


Ashes (Of Silken Memories)

by BugheadBitch



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Abuse, Accident, Anxiety, F/M, Forced Marriage, Hallucinations, Mental Disorders, Murder, Pregnancy, Schizophrenia, Tragedy, Veronica Lodge is a sweetheart, a little sad at first but it will have a happy ending lol, archie is a abusive husband with a mental disability, betty in jail, betty is just stuck in the world of chaos, bughead - Freeform, bughead being highschool sweethearts, college breakup (past references), jug is a lawyer, killing in defense, major character death but not bughead, toni topaz is a bitchy lawyer
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-08-27
Packaged: 2020-05-16 10:57:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 29,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19316788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BugheadBitch/pseuds/BugheadBitch
Summary: Betty and Jughead were highschool sweethearts. Wild and tormented but strong then, the biggest scare of their young hearts broke them apart and fate played its cards in the opposite direction.10 years later they meet again but this time she wasn't a golden ray of sunshine he knew. She was broken, bruised and deadly. Behind bars for murdering her abusive husband. He wasn't the silly, sweet and sarcastic Jughead Jones she knew either. He was a first-rank lawyer from New York with a paralyzed fiance and a devastating past. People thought he had everything but deep down he was still struggling to find himself.Old feelings start to resurface when Jughead finds himself sitting behind the glass in front of her but again fate turns out as their biggest enemy making it far more difficult to turn back when they both are tied in chains of commitments, wilderness and mistakes.Will they find their way back to each other? Or will all of it go down in ashes?





	1. Chapter 1

 

"What brought you back to Riverdale? After all the recognition in New York why did you feel you have to turn to a small town?" the pen sticking on the upside of his ear as he asked the last question in his list. He made sure that the tape was correctly placed on the table with the angle of the voice's momentum so it could be recorded without any faded or missing words.

"As I told you earlier. Riverdale is my hometown and I have a deep connection with it" he sighed fixing his mic on his hem and his mind on the particular question and smiling. "I wanted to set up my firm here. Doesn't matter how much recognition I had or have in some other place. If I do my work correctly I can regain it wherever I go" he concluded with a warm smile towards the man sitting on the other side.

"It was great talking to such a wise man like you Mr. Jones" the interviewer stood up and shook his hands with him firmly. "I look forward to see you grow even more. We don't have much honest people like you left in here"

"I wish I continue portraying the truth as it is otherwise its no use being the best lawyer" he left the man on the other side awestruck of his wisdom. He swiftly made his way out of the suffocated office of Riverdale Register and loosened his tie while getting into his car. 

All the memories, everything was flooding back to him and it ached his mind. The childhood, the teen years he spent in this small stifled town were all just too painful for him now. He never wanted to return but yet here he was! Sitting in his car which faced Pops, still open as always and full of customers even on a weekday. The drizzling weather tingled his visions and then at once he saw two very familiar people laughing carelessly at the stairs of Pops. He slowly got out of his car. He lifted his hand in the air and took of his specs, trying to visualize the impossible properly. Rain started pouring on him, damping his vision as he witnessed the scene in confusion.

_"Jug stop" she laughed hitting him with her umbrella. Her giggles were music to his ears. Her pretty blonde locks were falling in curls on her shoulders, half-wet half-dried from the rain._

_"Not until you give it back to me" he laughed back trying to snatch the bag from her hand and kept on splashing water on her with his feet. Both of their clothes were damp but they couldn't care less as long as they were in each other's arms everything was perfect._

They were dancing and playing in the rain. He was getting big time feeling of deja vu. He remembered this scene correctly as if it was just yesterday that they graduated. As if they never left. As if everything was the same it was back then but then again he remembered that it was no  _them_  anymore. He doesn't even know where she lived or what she does. When he vowed to himself that he won't reach out, he meant it. A chime of his phone was enough to snap him back physically into reality but he somehow left himself in the past with that drizzling thought.

_**Should I order pizza or maybe cook your favorite pasta for you? What do you want? - V** _

_**Don't go anywhere near the stove. I'm bringing lunch home- J**_ he replied and smiled looking at her text. 

She is always worried about his food and knowing that she can't cook anymore is the part that tears her up every time. Jughead loved her cooking. The sweet scent of sauces and spices and the perfect presentation she did for him was the best part of her cooking. He misses it too but things don't always remain the same and especially the best things are often taken away when you need them the most. 

He drove away to his home, clearing his mind of the pain he was feeling from walking into that diner. Everything, once again felt like crumbling down in just one frickin day.

 _"Pop died two years ago Jughead" Pop Tate's son sighed handling him his bag and smiling at him like an old friend usually do but he felt like he was shot in the chest._ Pop Tate? No _, he just shook his head and held the burgers then left the diner silently._

Was sadness in the air today? Or was he just feeling extra gloomy? he never found the answers. Its been a week he's back here. The whole week he was setting up his office and home, didn't have the time to socialize or talk to anyone but the first day he goes out and tries to relive, he's shot in the chest with desolated memories. This town hasn't changed a brink. Same gloominess, same suffocation.

He pulled in his driveway and made his way inside. Opening the door he smiled widely looking at her cute little figure sitting in the chair. She smiled back and excitedly tried to hurry over to him, dragging her wheelchair but he stopped her in her tracks and kissed her hair with a smile. 

"Hi" she squealed looking up at his standing figure. Her eyebrows were sweetly matching with the smile that was plastered on her face after watching him come home.

"Hi. How was your day?" he said placing lunch on the counter. He moved carefully from in between the boxes and pulled out plates from the cabinets. 

"I slept till 11 then woke up and cleaned our room and then I moved some light boxes, tried taking a shower but failed so just washed my hair and then texted you" she happily announced her all day achievements.

"Woah that's a lot. I told you don't try moving the boxes without me" he replied turning around to face her happy facade and then facing the counter again. "Also I said no showering alone Ronnie. It might get slippery, you have to be careful while I'm not around"

"It's okay Jug. I can't just sit back and watch you do all the work" she sighed dragging the wheelchair further. " I have to do some things too. Can't let you face all my burden"

"Hey! You're not a burden, okay?" he said frowning."I like doing your stuff and everything's gonna be okay in a matter of a few months" he lied, closing his eyes, knowing that it may not be possible. She may not be able to walk again. They may not be able to live the life both of them planned together. She may not survive the surgery. "You don't have to lift excessive weight till then, okay?" he said but there wasn't any answer from the other end. He stood still, thinking maybe he said too much, maybe he gave out a false hope to her. 

She silently started shedding tears unconsciously, looking at the ground, her hands in her lap and her head bent down. He rushed towards her little sitting figure and sat down in front of her, lifting her face with his hands. Hot tears were springing out of her eyes and she was furiously wiping them away.

"Ronnie" he lifted her head in his hands. "Everything's gonna be okay" again, false hope.

"What if I-What if I never walk Jug.." she sobbed. "What if we-we never have kids or get married or live the life we wanted to live?"

"Don't think like that Ronnie" he wiped away the tears that left her eyes and embraced her in a tight hug. "We'll be okay"

"Do you promise?" the words left her mouth and deadly silence filled the room. He didn't knew how to answer that. What if he couldn't keep it? What if he fails her again?

He silently nodded a little and kissed both of her hands. 

"We'll get through this" were the only words that left his mouth and his eyes wandered to her fingers where the emerald sat peacefully, making her hands look even more beautiful. It was a promise of unity and love. He failed her once and he wasn't going to do that again. 

 

 

"Your trial is in two weeks and you still have neither a solid proof about your story nor any witnesses" the brunette scoffed and smashed the papers on the table in front of her. Her hands rested on her chin as she spoke again. "Mrs. Cooper even failed to find you an attorney since no one wants to fight for you"

She didn't speak for a moment. She was too used to of all this stuff now. It's been two months and four court hearings and she says the same things over and over but there isn't anybody who would stand up for her and fight.

"No one wants to fight against Archie Andrews" she softly spoke with a taunt in her voice. "Even though he's dead, his fear is still alive in this goddamn town" a little smirk on her restless and desolated face appeared out of nowhere which made her look dominant but in fact it was the exact opposite of it.

"I'm contacting your mother again" she announced getting up from the seat. "I'll let her know that if you don't find an attorney, I'll end you and that's not what I want"

"Don't you think it's already the end?" she blinked her eyes in the oblivion feeling hopeless, suffocated and helpless as ever. "You win, Topaz. Go claim your throne"

"It's not the end if there isn't any fight" she smiled cunningly and slammed the door on her way out leaving Betty and her thoughts alone in the dark.

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

"Tell me again" she softly smiled as he slipped a necklace from behind on her neck. She was smiling ear to ear just looking at his raven locks falling on his emerald eyes. Her sleek satin dress matched with the black tux he wore. It created a spectrum of love in her heart which she never even knew existed before he came into her life. "Why can't I just stay at home?"

"And do what? Wait for me all night?" he smiled back at her giggling self. "You have to go out and socialize" he frowned and smiled again. His stubborn side was kicking in and she loved to tease him when he was being mulish. "Lets start our lives here like we had in New York"

"What if.. I'm not in a party mood?" she sighed and glared at his tall, bent standing figure behind her head. 

"Veronica Lodge is not in a party mood?" he laughed and clicked shut the earring on her left ear. "Unbelievable"

"You really are the most stubborn man I've ever met" she cracked a giggle and he bent over again to give her a sweet peck on the lips. 

Their lips connected and she felt fits of joy in her brain, like she could just get up and wrap her little arms around him. It was all she wanted to do. She wasn't the Veronica Lodge she used to be. The one with big dreams and goals. Her wishes were now sweet and simple. She just wanted a life away from hustle and chaos of New York with him, where she could protect him from his deadly past and he would do the same for her. They both just wanted escape from all the things they've been through and what they're going through but alas despite of their wishes being simple, life and fate was never so giving and merciful for them. They always had to fight for everything and they were still fighting.

"Tell me where are we going again?" she pulled back and asked caressing his cheeks.

"Senator Mason invited us to their public gathering in Town Hall. It's a fancy meetup parties of Lawyers and Businessmen and all the assholes who run this town" he scoffed dragging her wheel chair towards the door. 

They talked their way to the Town Hall with light music playing in the car. Both of them were really smiley and happy not knowing what was to come. It was their way of living. Smiling through chaos was what they had mastered from the very beginning of time but they both knew as long as they are together they'll get through whatever life throws at them.

 

"I failed you didn't I?" a soft voice cracked from her throat that broke the deafening silence between the two blonde haired, broken woman siting across each other with a glass in between them. The other end was still silent and lost in thoughts. Her green eyes were shining with the invisible tears that formed in the back of her mind. She just silently nodded knowing that whatever happened was supposed to be. It wasn't anybody's fault that she was behind an iron tainted wall that separated her from her mother who she wanted to hug desperately.

"Elizabeth" she spoke again. "Talk to me. Please?" she was constantly trying to get an answer from her, just desperate to hear her voice, even curse her for starting all of this but just speak to her so she can finally be at peace. Alice was constantly drowning in guilt. _I could've saved her, I could've just stopped whatever was happening but I didn't_ , her thoughts threw her in oblivion and she fell into a fit of tears that she'd been holding for too long. 

"You have to stop visiting me" She finally spoke to her but her cold voice broke Alice even more. "I don't want you to spend the rest of your life visiting your murderer daughter in jail cells and prisons"

"Don't say it like that Betty" she shouted. Tears springing out of her eyes like running fountains as she tried to hold herself together.

"Its done mom! It's over" she shouted back. "I killed my husband. I-I'm a fucking murderer" this time she started stuttering. "I've given up on all the laws that could prove that I'm innocent because this fucking town and its people still fear him" she concluded and looked down on the table in front of her so she could hide her desolated face from her mother. "There's no way out of Archie Andrew's trap"

"I'm sorry" Alice said dropping the phone and running out of the block, furiously wiping her tears, once again blaming herself for everything.

_"She said that people like you! They are too precious for this world" he said proceeding towards her backing figure. A slithering feeling in her heart wanted her to scream for help but she knew no one will be here to help her._

_"Ar-Arch sh-she's not real" she stumbled back on the table and begged for her life but it was all in vain. He wasn't ready to listen to anything that she said. She was too nice to be alive and he was determined to remove her traces from her world. "Just p-please l-listen to me"_

_"I love you" he confessed smilingly looking at her scared figure. "I love you but..but I love her even more"_

_"Archie please. She's not there"  she pleaded again, tears rolling down on her cheeks. "I am. I am real, our baby is real please don't do this"_

_"She will be angry if I didn't do what she asked"_

_"Stop!" she shouted with her hand on her stomach. Blood splashed everywhere on the walls and on her skin. Within a blink of second everything was ruined. Her life and her baby. His life and secret little red head standing in front of him smiling cunningly as always, she crumbled into pieces in front of him as he bled through his heart._

The painful memories rolled inside her mind as she was being dragged to her cell by guards. They locked the bars from outside along with her mind inside a hell hole which had no way out.

 

"You doing good?" An hour went by in a blink of a second as they began to talk with the people at the party. Veronica found some ladies of her interest and got lost in the chat and forgot that she wasn't even in the mood to socialize when she came in. He slowly made his way towards where she was sitting with many other woman and asked quietly.

"I'm enjoying myself here" she replied with a smile. Both of them exchanged glances and went back to their places when a strange yet so familiar man caught Jughead's eye and he walked towards him.

Standing there in a blue tux, wine in hand and same tightened jaw. Looking handsome as ever and making small and sweet talk with the ladies stood Reggie Mantle, Jughead's best friend from high school. He smirked still looking at him flirting with whoever possible in this big gathering. He didn't change a blink just got a little mature look on his face but same old habits. Jughead made his way towards him, slightly nervous about him reacting towards his arrival. He knew he left a ton of people mad by the way he left town and never looked back and Reggie was surely one of them but he had to shoot his shot now because it was now or never.

"Reggie" a slight nervous and serious tone made its way out of his throat and he cleared it instantly with a cough.

He turned around to a so familiar yet so strange voice that lingered in his ears. Somehow his heart beat started to shoot up by the thought of him standing in front of him after all those years but he still around and found him with a warm smile and nervous face.

"Jug-F-Forsythe" he muttered looking around at the respective gathering. His face was stunned at his sudden appearance out of the blue. He was not gonna lie that he actually buried Jughead after waiting three years for him to reach out. Reggie decided that whatever bond they had was not so strong for Jughead to actually tell him about what happened with him before leaving quietly. He was a tough guy but Jughead leaving like that was a shocker for him.

"H-how are you?" were the only words that came out of his mouth instead of 'I'm sorry'

"I knew it" his eyes twitched even more as he frowned at him. Firstly, Jughead couldn't comprehend what he meant. "I fucking knew you would come" he whisper yelled at him leaving him wide eyed in confusion.

"Reg I-"

"You just turned into dust 10 years ago, leaving no trace and now you return to set her free" he said interrupting him and mentally joining the dots he created himself, nodding furiously with his drink in his hand. "I'm not even surprised"

"Set her free? Who? What are you talking about Reggie?" he said as he saw fury build up in his eyes and he made his way out of his reach. Jughead stopped him in his tracks by holding his arm and turned him around. "I have no clue. Who she? What is going on?" he slowly made him sit on a lonely table beside the stood gathering.

"So you don't know anything? Huh?" he taunted him with a frown and he nodded in response. "You're trying to make me think that you show up in this God forsaken town just in time for her final trial out of thin air"

"Who Reggie?" he shouted enough for him to hear.

"Betty Jughead!" he finally spat looking at his confused face. "Don't kid me"

"I don't fucking know what is happening here. I landed back two weeks ago Reggie"

"She murdered Archie!" his voice cold and serious. Disgust dripping from his accent like he was talking about someone who he doesn't know.

Talk about a heavy pain in your chest which slowly makes its way from between your ribs to your heart, making you nauseous and turning you into a corpse at the same time and then eventually you die by the slow poisoning of life itself. Jughead felt that happening inside him. He was left shaken to the core. He just wanted to wake up from this presumed nightmare but it was as real as the pain he was feeling. _Betty? Murder? No way._ She was a beautiful ray of sunshine. A beautiful picture of innocence and an epitome of kindness. Happiness used to spread wherever she went with her free blonde locks blessing the air around them. _It can't be true,_ he said to himself as he felt the tears that built up in his mind, the tears he was ignoring since he came back to this gloomy town. 

"Jughead. Snap out" his silence was making Reggie panic. He quickly realized that he was being an asshole and maybe he broke this news to His clueless self in such a sudden way.

"Archie?" were the words that came out of his mouth and a million questions started spinning in his mind. Why Archie? What did he do? What happened between the two of them? 

"I'm sorry Jug! I was being an asshole" he apologized and stood up, taking his drink with him. "I-I guess I'll see you around then" taking his guilt with him, he just made his way out of his sight leaving him and his thoughts alone.

That night he was quiet most of the time. When Veronica was finally asleep he searched everything he could about her. Her life. Her family. What can possibly happen that left her with no choice then to just kill a man, both of them knew since childhood in cold blood? Too much shockers in one night. Betty in jail. Archie was dead. Her last hearing is in two weeks then she'll just be sent to prison. 

It was too much drama and exaggeration and his blood boiled at the sight of the words of the media who would do anything just for their advertising. The spiced up reality and the buttered up words for the gossip loving people were getting on his nerves.

> **Murder of the Andrews Heir. Riverdale mourns the loss of Archibald Andrews.**
> 
>  
> 
> **Blood war between two lovers. Elizabeth Andrews allegedly murdered her own husband.**
> 
>  

Lovers? Husband? These words sprung in his wind like a hurricane. _She married Archie_ , once again his mind was attacked by memories. 

_"He's a creep" he scoffed in his defense. His eyes were burning holes in the red head that stood at the end of the room with his backpack in his hands and his eyes glued to her little figure._

_"You're cute when you're jealous" she squealed and grabbed both of his cheeks with a warm smile._

_"Betty I'm not j-jealous" he glared back at her with a frown and noticed what she's been doing. "and I have a reputation"_

_"Yeah of a whipped asshole and dangerous kid from the Southside?" she giggled taking her seat._

_"Did you just said whipped?" his frown turned into a grin as he looked down at her._

_"Aren't you?"_

_"We're not talking about me right now" he smirked changing the topic back. "We're talking about how that creep asked you out when he knows you're my girlfriend"_

_"I think he didn't knew that we're together and he's just a guy that seems disturbed" she answered holding his gaze. "Maybe he needs help"_

_"Whatever Betty. I'm not letting you anywhere near him. "He seems dangerous"_

_"He's not dangerous" she pouted at his red furious face."You're just jealous" she shot him back another glare which melted his heart. Maybe he really was whipped whatever the hell that means._

He really was jealous at that time but just too stubborn to admit that. He smiled but suddenly his vision turned blur. He was crying and his cheeks were now stained but he didn't realize that till his glasses blurred his vision. How long? How long was she with him? What led to this? Since how long was he so slept on the world around him? How long will he survive knowing this?

> **Riverdale's famous businessman Archie Andrews murdered by pregnant wife.**
> 
>  
> 
> **Last chance for Elizabeth Cooper to prove her innocence.**
> 
>  
> 
> **One witness and a whole lot of chaos at The Andrews mansion.**
> 
>  
> 
> **Lack of attorney and evidence in the Cooper-Andrews case.**
> 
>  
> 
> **Fate of a murderer? Case goes to trial in a few days.**
> 
> ****

> **Antoinette** **Topaz to lead in favor of Andrew's heir. Other side still silent.**
> 
>  

> **Will the stone be turned? Or will it all go down against Elizabeth Andrews?**

The next day she was beyond annoyed when a guard called out her name harshly. She shot up and looked at him. He was calling her out because she had a visitor. A visitor? Who could possibly visit her again? The whole town sans her mother hated her for what she did. Who else was dying to see her so early in the morning?

She dizzily went over to her side of the glass. It was a man, unfamiliar to her. He had his head held down between both of his arms which made a triangle on his neck. She judged from his look and concluded that he must be a lawyer. A lawyer who already lost this case, she judged it by his appearance and posture. She silently picked up the phone and brought it to her ears.

"Who are you" she softly whispered and his head shot up from his arms.

_"I was picturing our future together" he said, still stirring the coffee that he had in his hands while she looked over to him in despair, crying and sniffling. "But maybe we're not looking at the same picture anymore"_

"Jug?" her eyes went wide looking at him. He was way different than what she remembered. He wasn't wearing his beanie, he in fact left it at her dorm room the night he opened the door and vowed that he'll never come back. His glasses were not the ones he used to wear for fun. He was really loosing sight and the thought of it made her giggle inwardly. His face was now different. Cold and serious but still it was some familiarity in him that still made her smile a little. She smiled after months and it was because of the man she hadn't seen since the past 10 years. Both of them left a piece of their existence in each other which they tried to find in someone else, but failed.

 _"Maybe we have to let each other go" he said again as he stood up and eyed the negative test in her hand. "_  

"Betty" he whispered back looking into the same emerald eyes which used to shine once but now they were deadly and desolated. What was fate doing now? Still, nobody knew the answer. They were as clueless now as they were 10 years ago. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the one's who are wondering. YES! that was a Spoby scene I used and YES! I cried so fucking much at that scene. I can't believe Marlene did that to us but atleast we have our endgame now because in PLL TP Mona said that SPOBY is married and is pregnant so I can die in peace now.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ITS KINDA FILLER CHAPTER AND SOOOOO SHITTY.  
> and it has frequent scene changes so pretend like you're in a crappy movie and one thing is mixed with the other and scenes are clashing.  
> SORRY.

Silence. Comfortable silence. The one that made her feel at ease after such a long time. There he sat with a tear popping from the corner of his eye, looked better then when she last saw him, his raven locks and emerald eyes made a spectrum of comfort in her mind. She felt free after such a long time, like she was not trapped in a jail cell for a crime she didn't commit, like she was not living in the shadow of Archie Andrews still.

"Where have you been Jug?" she softly said tilting her head slightly. She wasn't even blinking, slowly storing in all the details of his face, connecting the moles just like she used to but this time she couldn't touch his face. There was a barrier between them and it was not just glass. It was a barrier of years, mistakes and commitments. 

"I don't know" he nodded slowly looking down at the table in front of him. "I've been lost most of the time. Don't know how I ended up-"

"Loosing sight" she interrupted, still not blinking at his face. She giggled a little and he smiled and nodded again.

"We don't have much time Betty" he said in a serious tone, trying to come to the point as the phone time was a mere ten minutes.

"My time is up already" she smiled again, not knowing why she was being too smiley suddenly. 

"Its not over Betty" he gritted his teeth on her condition. He was helpless in front of her crumbling self. "You can still fight" 

Her features dropped at once, noticing his tone she was sent into whirls of confusion and loose ends that she tried to connect. No way she was dragging him into all this mess.

"Who sent you Jug?" her expressions changed suddenly. Her mind rolled out to all the possible things that could've happened to lead him here to her.

"No one did!" he slightly snapped, knowing exactly where this was going. Pushing others away when she thought she would explode was the worst trait she had and he still knew her better than anybody ever will. "Just..please answer one question" he slowly said lowering his voice. His expressions were a mixture of worry, sadness and confusion as he spoke. "Are you innocent Betty?"

The question hit her like a hurricane. Was she innocent? Was protecting your unborn baby from his abusive father a crime? Was killing in defense was a crime? Or was being Archie Andrew's wife a crime? Was she really innocent knowing damn well that he wasn't the most ideal man to marry but she still did?

"Betty" he snapped her out of her thoughts and realized that a tear was slipping out of her eyes. Her eyes were stone cold and desolated but tears were a hint of fertility in a barren land. There was a little hope and he was not going to let her lose it. She just wanted him to hug her so tight and rejoin her crumbled pieces. She didn't knew why she was talking or smiling so much today but she just wanted to pour everything out in front of him.

"No one" she breathed hard and coughed, tried to form words in her mind. "No one believes me Jug" her eyes watered even more as she bursted into a fit of tears. It's been so long since she cried her heart out in front of someone. It's been so long that she talked to someone who wasn't taunting her for what she did but listening to her heart's quiet sobs that she's been holding on for so long in herself.

"Betty! I believe you" he slammed the table slightly. His voice trembled looking at her condition. He was helpless that he couldn't hug her and comfort her like he used to. "I believe in you" he breathed and shook his head.

"It doesn't m-matter now" she smiled up at him. He was like a knight in shining armor for her and the thought of him trusting and believing her was enough to let go all the hope she had and just sit here for the rest of her life. She can live happily in that hell with the thought that the only person she'd ever loved believed in her when nobody did. "It's over already" her dry laugh had a glint of desolation.

"No its not!" the fury in his eyes was visible. "I'm gonna be your legal attorney..I'm gonna fight for you"

Her head shot up from her hands and she looked into his eyes deeply. Her eyes went wide and filled with worry as she stood up from her seat. Her voice trembling and body shivering while tears spilled like hot showers.

"Y-you can't!" she shouted and people from the other booths shot up from their seats, looking at her in a confused manner. She was plain shouting while the receiver was slammed onto the table.

"Betty calm down!" 

"No!" she shouted. "Go away and don't come back" she barked not realizing that she was making a scene.

"Betty" he shouted when he saw her crumble down and was as confused as everyone in that phone room. 

"They will kill you Jug" she sniffled silently putting her hands on the glass as he his hands connected from the other side, still staring at her in despair. "Don't ever come back for me" she breathed with her forehead on the glass as two guards dragged her crying figure away from him, back to the cell. 

His hands and forehead were still on the opposite side attached to the glass barrier. Seeing her walk away, he felt like someone shot him in the chest. He realized how painful it is to see someone walk away from your life. The way he did not realizing that she watched him close the door in front of her. It was fate who showed him a clear picture of what he did and the result was fatal and heart wrenching.

_"Don't ever wait for me" his cold words shot an arrow through her chest. He picked up his bag and left to proceed towards the door, hoping silently that she would say something to change his mind._

_"I won't" she coldly replied, not showing her vulnerability to him. She wanted to plead, cry and beg him to stop but fate got in the way and he silently opened and then loudly slammed the door, vowing that he'll never return._

 

 _What is it in this town? Did I ever left? Did I ever even felt like I'm not missing something? Why is everything so fucking gloomy suddenly?_  He had to fight for whatever he wanted in his life but still he never thought that something like this will be thrown at him. The way she shouted at him for never coming back was the part that left him confused the most.

"How'd it go?" a mystic raven haired beauty greeted him with a big usual smile on her face that he was unable to return. Dragging her wheelchair to him she held his hands and realized he's more worried right now than when he left home to go meet Betty. "Jug? What did she say?"

He was out of words, couldn't even form them and her questioning eyes were burning holes in him, her curiosity was always out of the world. 

"I-I met her" and he out of words again.

Silence fell again as she slowly dragged him to the couch and made him sit down and held his hands tightly.

"Is she the same?" she spoke softly making him look at her. "The way you remember?" she cracked and saw the look in his eyes, which made her smile and shiver at the same time.

Why was she asking these questions from him? Her eyes were filled with curiosity and he just couldn't hold the tears anymore.

"She's wrecked" he started slowly and his cheeks started staining. Veronica slowly wiped his tears and blinked at him.

"You have to believe in her Jug" she slowly said putting both of her hands on his knees. "The way you told me she did"

Veronica was right. Betty did believed in him when no one did. No one talked to him except Reggie. Everyone considered him a freak from the wrong side of the tracks, then his father did some stupid tradition thing of making him the King of Serpents which made everyone fear him. His image turned from weirdo to creep without him making any moves but he kept it. He thought that this image was better than the previous one so he just took a run but then she came. She was a bright ray of sunshine in his dark world. A rebel who secretly had a crush on the presumed bad boy of Riverdale High. Firstly he thought that it was just so she could piss off her perfect-pink parents but it was more than that. she genuinely believed in him and she knew he was more than what the world knows. His true self came out to people when he started hanging out with the perfect girl next door and quickly fell in love with her.

_"Hey Forsythe!" she quietly whispered, giggling at the sight of him kicking the vending machine which just stole his 20 dollars and stopped working. He rolled his eyes on her and scoffed trying to push her away, like he did with everyone else._

_"It's Jughead princess" his accent was cold but she still smiled back at him. "What do you want?"_

_"Uh nothing just wanted to tell ya that power's out since morning and the generator just shut down so kicking that poor thing won't get anything out of it"_

_"Ughh" he rolled his eyes again and started to leave when she spoke again._

_"Hey wait"_

_"What do you want?" he was so annoyed because he hadn't ate in like the past two hours and his starvation mode was on._

_"Why are you so annoyed all the time" her smiling facade was still the same despite of all the crap he threw towards her. "Just wanted to ask you if you wanted to go to Pops with me"_

_He turned around with his usual frown on his forehead and eyes twirled in confusion._

_"Is this some stupid dare princess?" he said nudging towards her and looking down to her height. "Like the one you get on fancy sleepovers?"_

_"How do you know so much about girl sleepovers? You've been to one?" she giggled and he rolled his eyes._

_"Tell me who sent you to mess with me?"_

_"Why would someone do that? Can't a girl just ask you out?"_

_"Do you even know what you're doing Elizabeth?" he stormed up to her, grabbing her by her bag that hung on her shoulders. They inched closer as he stared into her gleaming eyes._

_She had all kinds of mischief and shine plastered on her face. It made his heart beat faster. He didn't even knew why she was having that effect on some broody, strange, tough outsider like him. Her eyes gleamed with naughtiness looking at his stiff figure._

_"Yes I think I do!" she smirked a little, not knowing what she was doing to him with that smile. "Can't I just have a 'POSITIVE PERSPECTIVE' of somebody" she said twitching fingers of both hands as a quotation._

_"Positive perspective?" his eyes twitched with a frown. "Oh so..you're the kind of girl who thinks everyone has a good side and you have some kind of right to bring that out of them? huh?"_

_"I was just here to ask you out Jones but this conversation is going way terrible than I expected" she backed away from under his breath and tilted her head slightly, totally checking him out. "By the way I'll meet you at 6 tonight" she smirked again and started making her way out of his sight._

_"Wait" he said stopping her in her tracks as she turned around slightly. "Remind me when did I say YES?"_

_"Can you possibly say NO to this face Jones?" she said pointing towards herself and again her voice and smile was filled with all kinds of devilry. She turned around and just left leaving him struck with his mouth slightly opened and his eyes still twitching with a frown, trying to comprehend what the hell just happened in a matter of five minutes._

He smiled, ear to ear on the memory that struck him out of nowhere. She really did believed in him when no one did and it was time for a payback.

"It must've felt good having your soul back" were the only faded words he remember the raven girl whispering in his hair, thinking he was asleep and he did pass out with his head on her lap. She had a slight smile on her face and tears were stinging from the corners of her eyes. One hand on her cheek, wiping tears and the other hand was in his hair, slowly caressing them as he peacefully slept on her life-less legs after a long wrecked day. Her eyes slowly wandered across the room and there was a picture of both of them together. It was clicked by his best friend Kevin on the night of their engagement and the on the weekend before their lives changed forever. They look carefree, happy, drunk and lively. She was proudly showing off her big engagement ring and he was kissing her on the cheek. Maybe the thought of him once loving her entirely will let her rest in peace.

 

"You're not telling me why you came all across the city and drove six fucking hours from New York to Riverdale in one night?" her head slightly tilted and mouth slightly opened as she got a big ass surprise visit from her best friend.

"Yeah I'm not!" he slightly snapped. "Just like you're not telling me why you were cry-texting me last night" he shook his head violently as he shifted in his seat and his eyes were furious as hell. 

"Kev I-I was just having a bad night okay?" she said trying to convince him. "And then Jug came and he had the worst day of his life so we both just-"

"Fought?" he frowned.

"No! We didn't fought" she quickly defended her stance. "We kinda cried together and then he passed out on my lap"

"Why what happened?"

She just shot her head up with her eyes on the ground and sighed. She didn't really had the answer to that so she tried to jumble up her formed up thoughts and explain what was going on.

 

Meanwhile, he furiously slammed all the newspapers on the ground in his office and a writing pad sat there on his table which had the words **Antoinette Topaz** and **Fangs Fogarty** written on them. These two were the only things he could counter from the spiced up and jumbled newspaper articles on Betty's case. Whenever he read the words GUILTY and MURDER her crying face came in front of his eyes. _No one believes me Jug,_ were the words that echoed in his ears every time he heard someone say that she was a murderer.

 

"When did he came back last night?" Kevin silently shook his head after hearing every word she spilled. Still trying to wrap his head around the events that had happened within two weeks.

"He didn't" she uttered and went silent. Her best friend was incapable of wondering what she was thinking as the gleams of her eyes twinkled. 

He looked up at her down sided face which had a slight smile on the corners of her lips.

"He left his soul with her" this was the end of her life's meaning. She remembered his words when they were leaving town and now she was finally able to connect the dots. It was exactly what she prayed and wished for. "He came back to me lifeless"

_"It just doesn't feel right" he said at the very last moment that he was breathing in the New York air. "What if I go back and everything falls apart?"_

_"You're afraid of your father?" she inquired, chugging on the flakes she had in her hands._

_"No! I untitled myself as the Serpent King because it was not what I wanted and he understood" he sighed looking back at the awful fight he had with his father that night. "It just feels like something is pushing me towards itself and I don't know what it is, like after all these years Riverdale is calling me for something big"_

What he didn't knew that it was not some thing it was someone. More like a piece of himself that he lost in the whirlwind of life, more like a past love that was crawling out of the grave, more like a blonde and green eyed beauty stuck in hell waiting for him to come and save her.

 

"This is attorney Jones speaking!" he closed his eyes, feeling nervous for the very first time in his life about a case. He stomped his feet and shook his legs as a voice came over from the other end.

"What can I do for you?" her sweet cutter voice filled his ears.

"Ms. Topaz, we need to talk"

 

  

 

 

 

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The flashbacks are from General POV.

He knew from the start that it is going to be a hectic week. It was a multiple hearing case but he was again determined to speak the truth because it always sets you free. That's what he always believed in but what he never experienced was that the truth doesn't only set you free, it some times comes to bite down your soul and tears it into halves. 

Walking down across the street to the coffee shop, the words Attorney Topaz said about the case were echoing in his mind and it was setting his soul on fire. How can someone who has the responsibility of showing the true picture and set the innocent free could be this much rude and selfish?

_"This town doesn't want the truth Mr. Jones" she laughed at his words while sipping the cappuccino which was kept on the table in front of her. "They want drama, spicy headlines and mostly Elizabeth Cooper behind bars"_

_"This is fucking nonsense!" he said stomping his foot on the ground. "You don't care what will happen to her? She's innocent!"_

_"I'm afraid this is not the way the law works in this town"  she said standing up from her seat and smiling."I was thrilled to have the most popular lawyer of New York at my firm today and it'll be my pleasure dethroning you" this was it! He judged it entirely. She wasn't in this to fight and present the truth but to get recognition and fame. She was one of those people who wanted nothing but money and their greed leads to the destruction of many lives. She wanted to portray fight and drama so she could get what she wanted._

"One black coffee, no sugar please" he said as his fist met his forehead. He was slowly tailing circles in between his eyes to ease the pain that he got as a welcome back gift from his beloved town. 

A familiar voice met his ears as he looked up and found himself staring in the deep-set blue eyes that used to haunt him once.

"Alice?" she was alive? No fucking way! "I-I thought you were-"

"Dead?" she smiled, pouring his coffee in the cup. "No! I'm pretty much alive handsome" she chuckled and served him. "I defeated cancer in the most Alice Cooper way"

By showing it your sass? "No I- I didn't mean that it's just-" he was unable to form words because he stupidly said his thoughts out loud. "I-I'm sorry"

"You're surprised to see me, aren't you?" her gleaming eyes reminded him of Betty's emerald ones with blonde flicks gathered alongside them which made a picture of irresistible charm. "I was blessed with a new life because apparently, not even the divine wants ugly souls wandering between them"

"I-um" he was speechless and she was still the same, not letting him talk and completing all his sentences the way SHE wanted and assumed but she was pretty much right this time.

 

_"What in God's name are you two doing here?" her usual manner of barging in without any knock, scared both of them to death. Betty's heart almost stopped in her chest as she quickly removed his hand from her thigh which was making its way under her skirt before Alice came and washed over all the fun. Both of their lips were parted and gasping for air desperately. Their breathing told the untold story they were trying to hide from Alice Cooper's witchy facade._

_"M-mom! Nothing" she could barely form words as her mind was still in shock of what could've happened if she came in two minutes late. "We were j-just talking"_

_"Yeah! I see" her burning gaze shifted over to his beanie-less head from her daughter and she folded arms in front of his I'M CAUGHT IN THE ACT face. "What kinda conversation includes shoving your tongue down my daughter's throat Jughead?" she was furious as hell._

_"I-I'm sorry Mrs. Cooper" he said looking down at the ground and sighing furiously. "I just-"_

_"No more hanging in my daughter's bedroom Jughead!" she alarmed. "I gave Betty the permission to date you but this is now getting out of hand" she frowned and folded her arms again._

_"Mom!" Betty rolled her eyes._

_"You have a reputation young man-"_

_"Stop right now!" Betty interrupted again, this time more than furious."Do whatever you want to me but I'm not gonna let you humiliate my boyfriend just because he is not from one of your desired sick and formal families" this was the first time Betty stuck up against her controlling mother. It was the first time she backfired and it was not because she was trying to control her but because she was humiliating her boyfriend in front of her and she just couldn't hold it in anymore. She grabbed his arms and dragged him out with her leaving Alice with a resting bitch face but at that moment she realized it was no backing out now, Betty was entirely, incredibly in love with Jughead and she couldn't do anything rather than just accept it and be happy for the daughter she puppet-ted since the past 18 years of her life._

 

"Jughead! Are you there?" Alice snapped him out of the memory lane. "Here. I added a spoon of lemon in it-no extracts just artificial essence to enhance taste although you didn't say so"

"Wow, thanks" he faced the ground and backed off from the counter. "You remembered?" he laughed under his breath.

"How can I forget your sweet little weird choices of food" she smiled, making him sit on the chair across from her. "Betty used to laugh all the time on your secret Serpent recipe" her expressions suddenly went down and a soft look of sadness was plastered on her face. She sighed and drank from her cup. "And I still wonder how you drink it" he smiled in response thinking about her soft giggles and laughs when he first told her about the strong formula Serpents used to remove hangovers.

"You work here?" he asked when he found her drowning too deep into overthinking. 

"I-I actually own this place" she smiled looking down at her cup.

"Wow, that's amazing! This place is pretty good" he complimented.

"Oh no it's not!" she said instantly, giggling a little. "It's just another small cafe in a small town" her sighs were getting louder and heavier with every passing minute. "I-I assume you-"

"I know Alice!" he stopped her in her track of words because he saw the embarrassment fluttering in her eyes.

She shook her head silently up and down and tears started popping in her eyes.

"I got a call from Attorney Topaz 10 minutes before you walked in" she smiled and gasped, still shaking her head up and down. "She called to congratulate me for finding my murderer daughter a high profile lawyer" her head went down and tears started spilling from her eyes as he held both of her hands tightly.

"Alice!" he said slowly. "Look at me" she sniffled and looked up again. "We're gonna get through this okay?"

"How Jughead?" she quietly whispered. "I feel like-I-I feel like I threw her in the fire myself"

"You need to calm down Alice" he said slightly raising his voice. "She won't tell me anything because she's on self-destruct mode but you gotta help me" he sighed and backed away from her, shifting in his seat. "I know the upper-fat details but I still need to go down the lane to find solid evidence to set her free"

"What can I do?" she immediately said. "How can I help?"

"Start from 0" he said quietly slamming his hands on the table. "I need to know everything YOU KNOW" the tension and ache in his mind was growing with every passing second. 

She nodded. She, too, didn't know much about what happened with Betty after she married. She always kept details under wraps about her personal life because Archie didn't want to share much with the world and she went with the flow. She never asked how those red circles appeared on her daughter's wrists which she used to cover with make-up and now she mentally cursed herself for doing that.

"After you guys broke up" she started with the most miserable sentence and his eyes went wide and despaired. It was a mistake that he will nor forget neither forgive himself for. If he hadn't left her that day she wouldn't have fallen into the trap of a red-headed beast.

_2010, one year after their break-up Betty left for an internship she was applying for the_ _past three years. She finally got the opportunity to leave that godforsaken town behind her but most importantly, him behind her. Jughead was still an aching subject for her. How everything ended in a jolt still surprised her. Three years of relationship ended in a blink of a negative in her trembling hands. The only way she could get out of his spell was to leave town, as he did and never looked back._

_Betty got accepted in TIMES as an internee. She was happy after so long when she was leaving town as the wind slapped her face and blew her away with its dry and pleasant hands._

_Three years later Betty was done with her university and she was offered a job in Star-Ledger in New Jersey so she decided to settle down back in Riverdale because it was a mere mile away from where she worked. S_ _he was finally feeling good after such a long time. Although moving back to her small-town wasn't easy and since her ancestry was dipped in bad decisions and mistakes she felt like she had to face everything alone and the cherry on top was her work which made her do some terrible things like diving into dead people's past and create dramatic headlines for her articles._

 

> **_Suicide of young singer and model Valerie Brown leaves town waved up in desolation._**
> 
> **_Body attained from the lower floor of the Beacon Heights. Causes still unknown._ **

 

_Suicide? Why would she commit suicide? Betty's mind was heavy writing about all the probable situations Valerie had to face before she took such a step. She was at her own celebration party of her contract with a new music label then why would she do such a thing? Was she bullied? Did she ever try to seek help if she was feeling this way? Being successful doesn't mean you're happy too._

_This town will never change, she sighed and went back to wrapping up her article._

_She needed more information from loved ones and people who were close to her but as inhumane it sounded the Editor forced her to do such a thing. So she had to fake a facade of sympathy and mix up with the people so she won't lose her job. One day when she was getting coffee from her mother's cafe when she stumbled upon a familiar yet stranger redhead from her past._

_"Betty" he was surprised to see her back in the town as he never expected that day to occur._

_"A-Archie?" she twitched her eyes and smiled. He was the talk of the whole town nowadays and she knew that from news circulating around her._

_"Yeah! from your highschool" he reminded and she shook her head._

_This was a new beginning of something beautiful yet painful that none of them knew about. They took seats across each other and talked. She told him about her work and he did the same. Both of them formed a bond in no time. Their miserable pasts were their pride because they both survived and they did it alone. They laughed, they smiled even shed some tears and grew closer in a matter of a few weeks. Archie told her about Valerie and how they were getting married that summer but fate had other plans. She felt bad for him both at that moment and the way she treated him in high school. Although her words were sweet and apologetic, they carved a big hole in his heart which he still kept._

_Valerie Brown's death was a shocker for the whole town but nobody knew the real story behind it and Archie made sure no one would ever dare to. He walked upon his stairs at midnight, loosening his tie and scoffing with exhaustion. The only voice in the life-less mansion was his boots echoing in the silence. In the corner of the stairs was a bedroom where his stepmother Mary lived. She was the woman Archie hated the most but he still kept her as his father's last memento._

_Fred Andrews loved Mary so much that he forgot her Southside past in a blink but Mary's love for Fred never extended towards his son. She hated him and slowly ruined him too._

_Time changed way too quickly. When Fred died Archie took control over everything and began treating Mary the same way she did. Now she was a living corpse that begged for forgiveness from him but it was now his time to turn cold._

_The servants rushed to sleep at 10 and the mansion was filled with deadly silence and horror. He shot up to his bedroom and then after a while, chatting noises from his bedroom started tearing the tranquility._

_"You look tired" a voice echoed in his big apartment like bedroom. She stood facing the wall in front of the vase that was filled with black roses and she was smiling. "Bad day, huh?" she gleamed and smirked, making her way to the mirror._

_"I'm finally here with you!" he said, rolling up his sleeves and discarding his coat on the bed. "I'll be okay now"_

_"Oh Archiekins!" she said in her sickly sweet voice that embraced his ears. He made his way towards the mirror and stood across from her. "You love me so much but still not much to think that I'm real" her voice had fade taunting mixed with grins. She slowly embraced her hands in the air above the black diary on his table. The pages started turning in front of his naked eyes as she looked up and her face turned cold._

_Crap! She must've read those, he thought and walked towards her._

_"Ch-that's not true!" he snapped, looking at her sleek figure standing in the corner with her favorite candelabra in her hands. Her faded figure was slightly illuminated by the fireplace she was standing next to. The flame scarlet on her lips contrasted with the flames of fire, making her lips the only prominent feature of her shadowy figure._

_"You told Valerie about me, about us!" her voice started getting deeper and heavier. "She made you believe I'm not real"_

_"It was a mistake Cher!" he said, worry plastered on his face. "I-I corrected it! I did what you told me to"_

_"I know you did that's why I gave you a second chance Archiekins" she smiled again and flicked her hair back. Her skirt lifting up and down because of the dancing flames behind her. Her red locks made her face even more beautiful. She smirked as usual and he passed out on his couch looking at her slowly disappearing into thin air._

_The sins he committed for her were innumerable. She was more than just an illusion for him. She was his best friend, his first love and his soulmate and he would do anything for her even if that means killing his own child._

_Alice Cooper forcingly threw Betty into the fire by making her saying YES to his marriage proposal even when she had a few doubts about accepting. Her eyes were shut with the greed of money and lust for power that Betty never gave thought to. One mistake and it all went out of the window._

 

"I-I don't understand" he finally said and his fists met the table. "Archie was in love with Cheryl then why did he marry Betty? and why the hell did you FORCE Betty into saying YES?" he snapped.

Alice shot her head up and sighed at her controlling behavior that led to her daughter's destruction but she, too, had so many questions in her mind. Who was Cheryl? What happened to her? Was she real? Did Archie kill her too? Was she just his sinful regret, who followed him as an illusion?

"Betty never told me the whole story" she said, lacing her hands on the cup in front of her. The cream was dissolved and it was now cold just like her life. "Always said that Archie wanted his problems under wraps. It was for the big bad image he had in this town" 

"Betty knew about Cheryl before she married Archie?" his frown touched the roof and one hand was on his chin.

"That's the question only Betty can answer" her long and disappointing sigh was enough for him to conclude that she doesn't know anything else.

"I just have one week to figure out some evidence that can lead the jury to give this case another date just so I can collect more" his hands formed a triangle on his mouth with fingers joined at the bottom. Panic started to kick in his nerves. He was never this afraid of anything ever before but this time it wasn't just a case. It was her life.

"I was never a good mother" she said after a pregnant pause. "I never knew what she wanted, just focused on what I want her to be" tears were still stinging her eyes and hurt was all she had in those lost eyes. "But I-I admit that I was wrong about you" she shook her head. "She picked a great man for herself"

He bent his head down, couldn't just tell her miserable self that it is not what it used to be. This time he was not alone. He had commitments. He had a fiance at home who he loved so much but still, every night when she sleeps peacefully beside him he shifts and turns himself on the bed thinking if he'll ever be over that blonde beauty. Veronica was so similar to Betty that's why she caught his eyes. She was lively, spiritful and more than everything an honest and loyal woman he could ever wish for but still, she was not Betty.

 

He felt determined but already tired of all the loose ends this case had. _Maybe a good night sleep or getting drunk will help_ , he thought but then suddenly remembered that he can't be hungover tomorrow morning so he just sighed and walked in his home which was nicely cleaned up and the lights were dimmed. _Maybe she slept waiting for me_ , he shook his head and walked in further.

"You're late" she said faking an angry expression on her face as he entered the living room. He was holding his coat over his shoulder and his face was dreaded but it somehow managed to light up when he saw her smiling, tapping the armrest of her wheelchair and he realized she was all dolled up. Makeup, new dress and sipping champagne from her glass while smiling at him endearingly.

"Sorry babe, just had a lot of strange meetings today" he said kissing her. They both smiled after a long day in each other's embrace but that little moment was interrupted by Kevin as he coughed in the background with a clearly audible smirk in his voice.

"Kevin?" Jughead said surprised.

"Jug, Kevin came to stay with us for a few days" she happily announced and Jughead laughed while embracing him in a hug.

"When did you-What happened?"

"Uh I actually came to see you and Veronica" he said as Jughead made his way to the couch. 

"Everything's okay, right?" 

"No! it's not" veronica said in a protesting voice. "He is being transferred to Canada" her voice dropped.

"Oh" Jughead said as the disappointment was audible in his voice. 

"I won't be here for your wedding so I just-" he sighed sitting down beside Jughead while his hand held the glass filled with champagne. "I'm gonna miss my little V and you"

"Woah, I-I don't know whether I should congratulate you or-"

"You both are getting drunk with me" he announced laughingly. "We'll drown my sorrows in wine tonight" Jughead laughed, cheering them on with a glass. Although he knew the next day was big and important he just couldn't refuse Kevin's request so he went with the flow.

The three of them laughed and cheered all night. A little sad that Kevin was leaving for a long time but kind of happy since it's been literally an era they laughed and rejoiced each other's company like this. One night changed so much. One light, one crash and one moment got in the way of their happily ever after. Jughead was still holding on to it but Veronica lost her hope in between the long roads she couldn't walk on anymore. It was like life slipped out of her hands slowly but she still wanted to live with him because he was her only ray of sunshine. 

2AM in the morning they finally went to bed. Kevin passed out on the couch, didn't have the energy to walk to the guestroom. Jughead was pretty wasted too but he helped her lay down on the bed and he did the same alongside her. She stared into his bright burning green eyes for a moment, caressed his chin with a smile and saw him passing out but before he could do she took him in a long passionate kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck. He smiled and nuzzled her neck, planting small kisses and she giggled in response but everything went dark when he whispered "I love you Betty" and closed his eyes.

Her eyes went wide, looking at his sleepy face. He was pretty wasted but she was not that drunk. A big smile appeared on her little face and tears spilled from the corners of her eyes.

"I know you do" was all she said while slowly running her hands through his hair.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains very minor smutty context so skip that part if you feel uncomfortable.

"Stop dragging me" she snapped at the guards irritatingly as they pushed her by her shoulders. "I can fucking walk myself"

They remained silent and kept on dragging her. She was sleepy, tired and completely fed up from life and being dragged by two complete asshole strangers to some old crappy meeting room was the cherry on top of her already awful day.

Meanwhile getting drunk last night was the worst decision of his life. He was thumping his fist on his forehead to ease the pain and dreading on the fact that he was out of lemons this morning. He would've squeezed the hell out of them till his coffee was poisonously sour but at least the hangover wouldn't be this bad. He saw a shadowy figure approaching the room and in no time she was thrown inside and the room was shut tight from outside. She saw him and gritted her teeth, shaking her head violently.

"I told you not to come here!" she shouted at his face and he just cracked a smile as if his head wasn't already thumping like a Goddamn drum.

"Hello to you too" he just frowned and as stubborn he was, just sat still in front of her, determined. "Let's begin, shall we?"

"No!" she protested. It wasn't like she loved that hell-hole she was suffering in. She was just scared, for him and for his life. Living in the shadow of Archie Andrews was so scary and she doesn't want him in all this mess.

"I'm sitting here right in front of you" he said, tracing his fingers on the table. "I'm not going anywhere till I get the answers I need" he said tapping on the question list he had in front of him.

"You're still a stubborn piece of shit" she barked in another failed attempt to draw him away.

"I know right" he smirked with his teeth peeping out from one corner of his mouth. "Now tell me what happened the night of your wedding?" he shot and she gave him a confused look.

"You talked to my mother?" she raised her voice as her eyes went wide as if they'll burst out.

He nodded in response. "Now tell me! Who is Cheryl and what happened between you and Archie?"

She went silent for a moment like she was at a loss of words. He knew much more than she ever wanted to tell him. He was already in too deep and she hated that. "Please don't make me do this" her soft voice eventually came out and he noticed just how her tone changed from angry to soft. "I can't drag you into this!" Horror and fear were the only two things left in her lifeless eyes. Fear for him and his life, the horror of the long and dark shadows of the Andrews that will stumble into him and take him to the dark the same way she was dragged into them.

"Betty, what are you so afraid of?" his voice became concerned suddenly.

She remained silent and just nodded without even realizing. Loss of words and hope once again.

"Betty" he said again, slightly slamming the table in front of him. "Look at me"

"I can't!" she shouted.

"What can't you do?" he shouted back in response.

"I can't lie to you Jug" her hands started trembling under the table and handcuffs crackled with each other. "I can't lie to you that I don't need your help..I-I just-"

"You believe me, don't you?" he spat these words leaning on the table. She nodded a little in response and looked up. "Whatever you're afraid of Betty! We're gonna get through it"

"I believe you but it's too dangerous" she stopped instantly when her eyes went to his fingers. A band sat there and it tingled something inside her. It was not her place to be jealous but dear God she felt like someone shot her in the chest. Was he married? Engaged? Her eyes slowly lifted up to him where his confused gaze was fixed. "You have a family to take care of Jug" she softly spoke without even realizing that a tear slipped out of the corner of her stonecold eyes.

"I will be fine as soon as you let me help you" he was, once again fixed on his point. Stubborn as always. Classic Jughead Jones.

She sighed and shook the things that were curled up in her mind. She hated that he belonged to someone. She hated the fact that he was no longer hers. She hated that she let him go when she could've stopped him. She hated herself for even thinking that Archie could ever replace his place in her heart.

"Now start from the beginning. We don't have much time" he said tapping his feet impatiently while she was shifted into something magical, something she wished would still be true just like she wished that the band he had on his finger was a trace of herself in his life rather than someone else' 

 

_"What the fuck are you doing here?" both of them shouted in unison at each other when they awkwardly came face to face. She was standing there in just a towel wrapped up on her chest. Just when she thought her day couldn't get any shittier he came barging in like that._

_"I-I was looking for a guy" he said scratching his head like a jerk, trying to look away from her almost naked figure._

_"In girl's locker room? At 4?" she shouted with wide eyes._

_"Look Elizabeth- I-"_

_"Its Betty and get out" her voice was still scared and shocked due to the surprise break-in of none other than THE SERPENT KING himself just at the moment she was about to slip into her clothes. The only thing she could admire him for, at that moment was his timing._

_"I was looking for you all day.. I wanted to apologize that I couldn't make it to Pops the other night" bad timing again! he mentally cursed himself._

_"Can you do that when I'm not half-naked?" she shouted again._

_"I can't leave right now" he sighed, running his hands through his hair. "Me and my guys were following a guy and he came in here..I can't leave you alone!"_

_"In-in here?" her breath got stuck in her lungs. "When?"_

_"Don't panic, okay?" he said in an assuring voice. "I'll find him and-"_

_"I don't care whatever the fuck Jones! I was naked three minutes ago and he must be enjoying the show while running for his life" she shouted at him and his eyes went wide. This girl was extremely sassy and had absolutely no filter. He felt like his insides were twisting and tensing by her words although she didn't say anything to turn him on but shit he was getting hard and he wanted to just slam her against the locker. Jughead went from dangerous to lusty within a two-second span and he, not even himself could fixate what was happening to him._

_"I-um..get.. dressed, I guess?" he said again. "I-I'm just by the door" he informed._

_She nodded hugging herself tighter. He made his way to the door, trying not to turn around and face her loud and furious words again. To distract himself from her nakedness he clicked call on his phone and started barking like a mad dog._

_"Did you find that bastard?" She shivered a little on the raise of his voice and continued dressing."I'm coming. We don't have much time" the call ended and he smashed the phone into his pocket. "Are you decent Betty?" he asked and somehow, for no apparent reason, it sent loads of shudders down her spine. How the hell was he so soft yet so sexy and dangerous at the same time? How??_

_She was immensely attracted to bad boys and knowing that he wasn't just a bad boy but also a softie at heart, she was flattering herself idiotically._

_"Ye-yeah" she replied, looking down nervously, one hand over the other arm. She felt like she was losing it, the sass and fury were gone in a blink and her nervous yet drooling in lust self kicked in._

_"My men caught him from outside" his voice was hard and cold as he shook his head violently._

_"Wh-why were you chasing him?" she asked hesitatingly. She didn't know why but she felt a little flabbergasted at the moment. She wasn't afraid of him like she should be. She was, furiously turned on by his toned and hard face, the way he gritted his teeth and cursed through the phone and then gave her space was incredibly, amazingly hot._

_"He is a street drug dealer" he sighed straightening his face. "I've been following him for the past week"_

_"Drug..dealer?" she said wide-eyed. "Aren't y-your guys supposed to do that?" Oh no, Betty! Wrong question. She mentally cursed herself for asking this kind of question right away. It was true that she was not afraid of him like other people were but still he was THE SERPENT KING and he doesn't take shit from anybody let alone a stupid sassy blonde schoolgirl._

_He turned to answer her question and she got lost somewhere in his gaze. Thinking that she definitely asked the wrong question and he was making his way towards her. His face had no expression for a second as he bit down his lower lip aggressively and hell, she found that extremely hot. Her nerves were jingling with mixed emotions of shock, a little bit fear and a whole lot of hotness bundling up that she doesn't even know what to feel out of that three._

_"Yes and no!" he spat. "Serpents don't deal drugs anymore! Not on my watch" he cornered her with a sly grin that she couldn't comprehend._

_"Oh" she muttered like she wasn't drooling over him at that moment. She felt her nerves shivering inside her body. It's been a year since she wanted him to acknowledge that Betty Cooper exists but he never did! Then out of the blue one day, she asked him out but he didn't show up and now he fucking barged in while she was barely covered and stood in front of her with the evilest smile she ever saw. It was one hell of a memorable week in perfect pink Betty Cooper's life. Suddenly her mind went to the most unpleasing chapter of her life and she thought that the visuals of him cornering her with a smile was a sight Alice Cooper would instantly die on or maybe she'll commit suicide when she'll know that her perfect daughter fell for The Serpent King._

_They had never been this close before and Betty was losing her mind slowly. Her breath was hitched in her lungs, completely choked. Whatever he was trying to do, it was surely working and she had the sudden urge to be closer to him. He just smirked, hard and then suddenly pinned her against the locker with an audible slam. She could feel his hard muscles grinding against her soft body and her head came in contact with his chin because she was so small in front of him. Betty looked directly in his lust-filled, dark, dangerous emerald eyes. Oh_   _God! she was staring right in the sinful eyes she talked for hours about to her best friend until she dozed off cursing Betty for her impossible crush. His beautiful dark features were slowly poisoning her mind and she wanted to give herself to him. His gaze was burning holes in her body and doing wicked things to her. She never experienced intimacy with anyone but from the little inappropriate things she heard, she concluded that she was incredibly turned on as her thighs were furiously clenched together._

_“You certainly feel softer than I imagined blondie” he slowly whispered against her cheeks and Betty’s eyes widened and she felt her insides twist. Did he ever think about her the same way she does? She never had such unholy thoughts about him but she did imagine his lips on hers, his tongue in her mouth and the feel of their hands being entwined with each other as they passed in the hallways. Her cheeks were flustered and scarlet but she didn't have the nerve to make the first move._

_“I wonder how that sassy mouth of yours would feel against mine” He gruffly said and she breathed audibly on his provocative words. His voice was low and his body was becoming more aligned with hers suddenly. The way he slightly leaned toward her and trapped her made her even more nervous than she already was._

_Betty inhaled sharply with the lump in her throat as his burning gaze fell to her lips._

_“You made a mistake coming to me that day” His voice was mischievous and sinful as his breath tickled on her neck and she was screaming inside.“Now I’ve got my eyes on you” His words added even more arousal to her desperation._

_“I guess I did a good thing then” she finally spoke up, feeling determined and suddenly not at all nervous, in fact, she was having the best time of her life right now. She slowly met his eyes as he smirked joining their foreheads together._

_“You made me doubt myself blondie” he whispered. “And that’s a not a very good thing"_

_She let out a long, low desperate sigh because he was taking too long and she couldn't hold it in anymore. He knew exactly what he was doing to her and slowly, smirkingly leaned in and captured her soft lips in between his. Her heart stopped for a split second and eyes went wide. He was teasing her by taking in her lips between his teeth but what he didn't know was that he just made her first kiss sexy rather than soft, in fact, it was totally unlike she imagined, but certainly better. His breath was a mixture of tobacco and mints, a combo she never thought she would love so much until it mixed in her breath._

_His mouth pressed more firmly against hers. Jughead’s tongue teased her lips open before slipping inside her mouth, taking full control. Her breath hitched in her throat and mixed with his. One of his hands grabbed her waist tightly and he pressed into her and pinned her back more firmly on the locker's cold and slippery texture. Both of their mouths opened wider as their_ _tongues tangled sinfully against each other. He sucked on her lower lip and chewed as she rolled her eyes and gasped. His hands slipped further down her waist grabbing her ass firmly without even realizing that he was going too far but neither of them was conscious enough to even care about soft kisses and first times. Everything was so new to her but she felt like totally giving in to him without giving it a second thought._

_He then slowly moved down and nuzzled her neck taking her skin in between his teeth. She closed her eyes and gasped harder at the new feel. Her hands slowly fiddled in his hair as she became dizzy. She felt drunk on the feelings he gave her._

_Maybe talking to him the other day wasn't such a bad idea after all._

_“Fuck” he swore as he felt himself tensing at her feel. He knew if he kept on going he would never stop and the other thing he was sure about was that unlike him she was still a virgin. He suddenly stepped back and felt so empty. Her eyes fluttering furiously at the sudden gap he left between them. She started craving him like a drug the second he pulled back. He chuckled looking at her ruffled condition and picked up his jacket from the ground that somehow in the blink of the moment was thrown across the bench they were standing next to._

_"I didn't know_ _strawberries can taste so incredibly sinful?" he chuckled making his way out of the locker room while he held his leather jacket over his shoulder._   _She was shaken to the core, slightly trembling with pleasure but her mouth still had his taste and the thought of his hands grabbing her were making her lose her Goddamn chill._

"Betty" he shouted for the tenth time, trying to snap her out of her trance. She was smiling like an idiot with her gaze on the ground without even realizing what she was doing. It felt like she just experienced their first kiss again. She wondered if he still had those tattoos on his body. The serpent on his shoulder. The little crown on the left side V line of his torso and the little 'B' she carved right into his chest with a switchblade and he just laughed through the pain but didn't complain. He loved it actually. They were some rebellious and wild teenagers but apparently that wilderness and spirit disappeared into the chaos that life threw on them. Here they were sitting across each other with nothing but emptiness in their eyes.

"I-" she said straightening the curves of her lips, the smile that appeared after so long. "Sorry" 

"Start now" he was as determined as he was back then and she hated it. He was not going to give up on her and the fear of it was eating her from inside. She sighed and fidgeted with her fingers nervously, not sure if he'll understand what she was about to tell her and the last thing she wanted right now was him giving up on her once again. Little did she knew the way his mind tortured him after he decided to pull off that stunt of trying to forget her. He would never do that again unless he wants to slow poison himself to death.

"I-I knew that Archie was not the ideal man to marry" another long convented sigh came from her side as she moved her head to the other side just so she doesn't have to face him and his questioning eyes. "I told mom that he proposed after two years of dating and I wasn't sure what I was gonna do" his eyes tried focusing on her even more. It wasn't just a case for him. It was the question of her life and she was dear to him in more than one way. He hated that he had an emotional attachment with this case because he always kept his feelings out of his work but it was different this time. "Mom.." she laughed with a grin. "In her..usual way forced me into saying Yes!" this information wasn't new to him but still his blood boiled in his veins. "So..I did" she shook her head. "We got married after three months and what I saw on my wedding night was nothing less than a nightmare"

_Her sweet giggles were filling the ears of all of the people in the dark big mansion. She was everyone's instant favorite. Mary loved her, the servants loved her and more than everything they thought that maybe Archie can heal under the light that shines out of her and that made everyone, even Mary, delightful. Both of their laughter lit up the dead home as they made their way to his bedroom after the wedding photoshoots. She looked utterly beautiful and mesmerizing in her long white wedding gown but she was exhausted. He led her up all the way and when they reached his bedroom he slowly whispered in his ears._

_"I want you to meet someone" he said and she smiled, wondering who could it possibly be that he's so keen for her to meet on their wedding night. She'd been in his bedroom many times but not for so long to actually know what goes on behind the long, dark shadows when the clock strikes midnight. She stood there with a big smile as he led her inside and locked the door._

_Leading her behind the mirror, he froze and started calling out an unfamiliar name which made her even more curious._

_"Cheryl!" his smile was so wide and he was so happy after so long. It made her wonder that whoever that was, she must be someone really special. "Cheryl look! Betty's here. She wants to meet you"_

_In between the shadows, someone appeared in front of him. She was dressed in a long black and sleek dress with the same shade of flame scarlet on her lips that palpitated her lifeless figure. Her face had the usual bitch smirk and her hands held her favorite candelabra. His face slightly dropped instantly when he saw her wearing black. She always wore black when she was mad at him or he did something he wasn't supposed to do. She slowly and swiftly made her way towards the mirror Betty was standing in front of and smiled, tilting her head._

_"Betty! Meet Cheryl" he excitedly said grabbing her by her arms and pointing out behind the mirror. The light was dim but not so dim for her to lose vision. She frowned and twitched, blinked her eyes many times and looked at him confused. His eyes were constantly rotating between Betty and the red-headed illusion that stood in front of her._

_Betty stepped back a little, untangling her hands from his. Her head was now spinning from confusion and she looked lost._

_"A-Arch! Ther-there isn't anyone here"_

_"No there is!" he smiled again. "Cheryl is here!_ _Sh-she’s just a little mad at me that I told you about her" he confessed in front of her confused self._

_“Archie!” she again said raising her voice a little, trying to snap him out of whatever illusion he was in. “We’re alone! There is no one in this room except us”_

_“She is, Betty! believe me” his mouth parted with disappointment. She wasn’t talking to him now that he brought Betty in between. “She’s just mad at me” he pinched the bridge of his nose while she stood there shaking her head in despair. “Just don’t say that she’s not real when you meet her, okay? She doesn’t like it” he whispered in her ears and dragged her across the room again._

_"You made the same mistake again Archie" she flaked her red locks behind and gritted her teeth smilingly while tilting up her chin._

_Betty, then realized, that she’d gotten herself in such a big mess. It was just the beginning but she was already feeling herself suffocating in the dark and gloomy wallpapered bedroom that she thought was hers now but instead it belonged to two stranded red-heads. One was a beast in disguise and the other one was a monstrous illusion._

"Cheryl wasn't real?" Jughead spat, slamming his hands on the table. He'd never been this confused in his life before. His mind was flooding with so many questions and he wanted the answers now.

"I-" she was about to clear out all his queries when the bell rang and the guards barged in again, telling them that the time was up for their meeting. They both looked at each other in despair. He didn't want to leave her with so many questions flooding in his mind and on the other hand, she doesn't want him to leave at all. He sighed in defeat and packed up her case files while trying to contain his anger. He looked up at her face and she was smiling wide looking at his finger.

"What's her name?" she spat out of curiosity when the guard grabbed her from her shoulders in the same old fashioned way of making sure that the shackled prisoner won't break free from an army that waits on every Goddamn gate.

He looked down and met her eyes on his ring finger and smiled. 

"It's V-Veronica!" he saw him gawking at his ring and instantly knew where this question came from. She smiled while she was being dragged out only to just cry out the tears away from his sight. The ones she was trying to contain in her eyes since the beginning of the meeting when she saw that band.

 _He's not yours anymore,_ she reminded herself.

She hated everything right now. She hated that he wasn't hers anymore. She lied down on her uncomfortable bed and stared at the ceiling with thoughts running around her mind. 

She suddenly concluded that whatever happened or happens, no one! can ever! take away what she had with him. His touch, his memories, the laughter, the giggles, the pain, the first times and his sweet embrace. It may not be canon anymore but still, she had him and she doesn't regret a thing so she just smiled remembering the best moments of her life.

 _It was just another Saturday night that she was alone at home. She missed him so much but he wasn't replying to her. It was 2 AM in the morning and nor Josie neither Betty could_   _sleep so they both just sat in front of their windows that faced each other and texted all night while smiling and laughing with each other. It was an advantage for both of them. Suddenly Josie's face turned blank as she hit the keys on her phone furiously and meanwhile Betty read the text someone was knocking on her window. She jumped and almost screamed but she soon realized that it was just Jughead, climbing up her window in the middle of the night. Josie burst out laughing when she realized that it was just Betty's weirdo boyfriend pulling stunts like these._

_"You almost gave me a heart attack!" she shouted as he climbed in and smirked._

_He kicked off his shoes then discarded his jacket and beanie on the floor and made himself comfortable under the covers while she was still breathless by the little stunt he pulled._

_"Where were you? I was texting you all evening" she shouted, faking expressions, trying to pause angry at him but his smile melted her instantly._

_"I was on a run! Caught a whole gang today" he happily declared and she sighed._

_She patted him like a good dog at his efforts to keep a dirty and dark town like Riverdale clean. Her phone blinged and lit up. She knew it was from Josie so she opened it and smiled, reading the text._

  _ **I would love the details but not visuals, close your goddamn curtains! -J**_

_She went over to her window and closed the curtains while exchanging one last glance with her then back to bed where an exhausted Jughead lied like a corpse after a long day on the run. She pulled up the covers and laid down on his chest as his arms hugged her tightly. He smelled like tree leaves maybe because he was hiding all day in bushes and trees to catch the men he was following. She sniffed in the fresh scent and closed her eyes._

_"I missed you" he said stroking her hair gently. His voice had evident hints of tiredness and exhaustion._

_"I missed you too" she said and smiled in his chest and hugged him tighter._

_Suddenly she felt him tensing underneath her as she moved a little. She knew exactly what he was thinking and she felt her blood rushing to her cheeks. He gently rolled down his hands and slid them under her light sleeping shirt, just to tease her but instead, it had a different effect. His finger slowly circled the bare skin they found on her waist and she slightly rolled her eyes on the feel of his hard hands on her warm skin. It sent shivers down her spine. He bit down his lip and lowered his hands even more. This time he firmly grabbed her ass and she gasped with wide eyes that she could've sworn, would've burst out from the allotted spots if weren't fixed. He smirked and his one hand patted her on the head gently._

_"This is some of the best things I grabbed today" he laughed and she hit his chest playfully but he wasn't just going to stop right there._

_All of his exhaustion and tiredness was gone in a blink and he was now fiercely turned on._ _He suddenly rolled over, leaving her completely and utterly shocked._

 _"Why do you suddenly look so delicious?" The lusty tone of his voice made her heart stutter. She was now used to of the intimacy but they still haven't been that far. He looked so raw and so powerful hovering over her that it made her lungs shrink but in a good way and she squealed nervously when he closed the gap in between them that their breaths started to entwine with each other. He_ _felt the heat radiating from her body and he smirked knowing exactly what he was doing to her. His breath on her face made her unbelievably hot and the flame he lit inside her was burning through her eyes._

_“I promise I wasn't this hard when I climbed up" He whispered in her neck and she held her breath but she didn't look away, she was determined to get what she wanted and she felt so ready although he had some doubts still about whether she wants it or not. She held his lust-filled gaze with confidence that erupted inside her from god knows where. "It's all your fault" he smiled, throwing all of the blame on her._

_His eyes looked like a war was going on inside him between YES and NO but she wanted to dwell herself in the sea of those sinful emeralds._

_His hands cupped her face and he furiously smashed her lips with his. That kiss was different from every other they shared before. It had so much passion, lust and want that it made her heart skip several beats. It dawned on Betty that it wasn't anything like the kiss they shared in the school hallways while everyone gawked at them or the heavy makeout sessions on the Blue and Gold desks or even the locker room session they had five months ago was nowhere as good and lusty as this kiss was._

_Only if Hal and Alice knew what was going on in their daughter's bedroom while they were away in Greendale sipping champagne with old and rich journalists who had no vision of the world._

_Jughead’s tongue slipped into her mouth and started stroking her's and she lost her mind. He gently pulled on her hair and thrust his tongue deep inside in a demanding way. Cherries mixed with tobacco and blended in her breath._

_He broke apart when the need for air became vital. Betty smiled at his desperation but then she noticed he was trying to pull back, maybe because he thought she isn't ready but she instantly pushed him back on top of her. He frowned and she felt a little blush rushing to her cheeks. She didn't want to look like she's desperate for him which she, in fact, was! and she never felt anything like this before for anyone. She just wanted him so much and all the lust she had was only for him._

_“If we don't stop now” he whispered in her ears while his lips pressed gently to her neck. "I don't think I can control myself" he sighed holding her gaze._

_"What if I tell you that you don't have to!" s_ _he sucked in a sharp breath. Jughead pulled back slightly from her, his expressions were confused and worried. Betty slowly raised her hand and pressed their foreheads together. "What if I tell you that I want you?"_

_"I don't want you to rush-"_

_"I'm not rushing into anything" she protested with both her eyebrows twitched in fury and he remembered just how furious she can be when you tell her WHAT SHE DOES AND DOESN'T WANT. Betty Cooper knows what she wants but terms and conditions apply when it comes to Alice Cooper._

_Jughead concluded that she really was ready but he was still determined to take it slow so she could stop it if she didn't feel like it. He moved his hand over to her light sleeping shirt. She looked up into his eyes as he slowly discarded them on the floor where his beanie and jacket already sat along with his shoes. He slipped his hand up and down on her naked chest and her cheeks turned crimson. She was never this vulnerable in front of anyone before. He slowly began to plant kisses on her chest, slowly taking it all in, nibbling and sucking on every spot he found._

_“Jug” she moaned as his tongue and lips touched her warm skin."Oh my God!" she aggressively whispered in his ear and he smirked proudly but didn’t stop, instead, he sucked faster. Slowly he proceeded and took off his own shirt and then again, hovered over her._

_He looked at her face and found a little smile and satisfaction rather than what he expected so he moved again. This time he slowly moved his hands under her shorts and she gasped with her eyes going wide again._

_He found what he was looking for and started rubbing her clit at a fast pace and she rolled her eyes fiercely. Her hips began to buck and he pulled her into a tight hug with the other arm just so she won't feel so vulnerable in front of him. He dipped into her ears whispering sweet words while moving fingers inside her._

_“You have no idea what you're doing to me” he said with a smile. He was telling the truth. He never felt this much pleasure with anyone else before although he was trying to make her feel good but he felt so utterly satisfied while she tried not to scream as he pumped faster._

_“Jug!" she cried into his ear._

_He kissed her hard on the lips and rubbed her clit fast as he could to get her off the edge._

_“Jug" she whined again, helplessly in his ears while her nails were slowly digging into his neck._

_“You're almost there” He whispered in her ear while running one hand in her hair. He closed his eyes and nuzzled her neck. He wanted to feel every inch of her against him but instead, he decided to take it slow. She was getting closer and his priority was to make her feel good before she rolls off._

_“Jug!" she screamed, panted, moaned and whimpered in his arms as he held her in place and kissed her while she rode off. Everything went silent for a moment but it was comfortable. She was breathing heavily and her hands were tightly gripping his shoulders while her hair was messy on her face which made him smile so wide. Even in the messiest condition, she looked effortlessly beautiful writhing underneath him. He took in her lips and kissed her so passionately while smiling in between and Betty melted in his arms as the night went along and slowly both of them dozed off._

Betty looked back and smiled. _How much has changed since that night,_ she thought. It feels like yesterday that she was devouring his arms and breathing in his scent while he loved her. Then it's flashed off to today where she is sitting in a small cell and breathing in the dust of the wicked from the congested walls and dreaming of his arms. The arms which don't belong to her anymore but at least she knows how that feels around her. A home away from home but certainly more so.

 

"I g-gave up on her" she hiccupped and a little stutter cracked from her voice. Her eyes were wide in oblivion and his burning yet furious gaze was stuck on her. Not her! She was the only person besides him that Betty loved with all her heart and she trusted her but what did she do? She left Betty just like he did! When the times were tough and cold they vowed to travel on the bumpy and cold stoned path of life together but when Betty fell on her feet, she gave up on her. "I accused her" a tear slipped from the corner of her eye and her hand met her forehead. She closed her eyes, silently praying to just drown and die in the guilt she was experiencing. "The same way everyone did" she continued while he fisted his hands, thumping it on the armrest.

"It's not too late" Veronica interrupted, wiping away the slipping tears at her own face. "Everyone makes mistakes. You made one too"

Jughead didn't speak anything for a while. He was trying to fit all the things that happened in the course of the last twenty-four hours in his mind but he was failing every time he tried. When he got home, he thought that he will relax and dread alone in his room and drown himself in sorrows but instead, he found a familiar face sitting on his living room sofa and Veronica was holding her hands in a comforting way.

"I don't even deserve her forgiveness but-" she sniffled hard and wiped her nose. "-but I want to help you in this-"

"Josie-" he interrupted shaking his head furiously. "The last thing she wants right now is a deceiver best friend sitting behind the glass, spurring sympathy for her from the same mouth that turned against her!" his expressions turned cold and hard. Veronica was worried. She never saw jughead this much angry. He was constantly tapping his feet on the ground and slamming his fists on whatever thing he had in front of him. He was crimson with anger and it was all evident in his eyes too.

"Jug!" Veronica spoke in between his gritted teeth. "She gave you a second chance even tho you wrecked her once" she slowly said with an unfamiliar expression. It was mixed with anger and sadness with a little hint of worry. "Josie deserves it too" she concluded lowering her gaze to the ground, trying not to meet his burning eyes. 

Jughead was flabbergasted on her reaction. Her words hit him like a big yellow bus. His breathing pace increased as he ran over and tripped on his own thoughts and mistakes. Veronica was right! He let her down but Betty gave him another chance to stand in front of her. She was right! He ripped her apart but when he went back she was smiling at him as if nothing changed. She was right! If he can get another chance after what he did, Josie does too.  

 

 

 

 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is totalyyyyyyyyyyy unedited and so short. I just wanted to update.  
> lol sorry

 

"I still don't know how you managed to do this all on your own" Josie said, coming into the bedroom and sitting down beside her. She put the tray of cupcakes on the coffee table between a pair of tall windows that looked down onto Elm Street. The weak light of the setting sun illuminated the light hue colored room. The lamps in the atmosphere created a serene effect, making it Veronica's favorite room in the whole house. She was a lover of beautiful things; that included Riverdale and Jughead. Riverdale's lousy but beautiful architecture and deadly history combined to form a profoundly sad and haunting sense of identity in her mind. The apparent isolation of the town touched her but the thing she loved the most about it was her raven-haired lover.

She would always remember her first glimpse of Jughead. Veronica had a long day at her boutique with a huge wave of customers who wanted to get their hands on the V.L's new and freshly seasoned articles and the cherry on top was the intense summer heat. She just wanted to loosen up a little and when she got a call from Kevin about a little night-out of friends, she thanked God for bestowing her with such a good friend. She dolled up within fifteen minutes, not knowing that her life was going to change forever by a little collision with a certain raven-haired prince in a bar she was trying to chill in, with her gay best friend and his boyfriend.

_"I'm sorry ma'am are you okay?" he asked picking up the contents of her handbag that sprawled on the floor. He was looking at the ground while his hands worked on the things on the floor but her eyes were stuck to his face. That sleek jawline and precious emeralds in his eyes created a picture of beauty and enchantment. For a moment she forgot that she was sitting on the floor with a complete stranger in the middle of an over-crowded bar until Kevin barged in between them._

_"Hey Forsythe" he said greeting him with a hug. Veronica was awestruck and oddly happy that her best friend already knew this hottie. "Veronica! This is my friend Forsythe Jones" he introduced as both their eyes met for the first time. "And my legal advisor in the DeBarow's case" he said frowning and shaking his head._

_"I'm Veronica Lodge!" she smiled as he slowly paced his hand forward for a quick shake. She never believed in fantasy or magic but what she experienced that day was the pure enchantment of the heavens._

_He was everything a girl wanted. Beautiful, courteous, mature. She never expected a cliche thing like love to happen to a woman like her but she accepted the changes gracefully._ _Veronica never told anyone about this, but it had been his eyes who she had fallen for first- her love for him, as a whole, came later. All of them spent the night laughing and drinking like they knew each other from the beginning of time. He invited everyone to his apartment to spend the night as it started raining and all of them, except him, were pretty wasted to drive in such weather._

_She looked around at everything just to know more about the beast that caught her eyes so instantly. In usual circumstances, it was not easy to win Veronica Lodge's heart or even be the reason she smiles but her 'tough egg' image cracked under his gaze and the unusual casualty was that she wasn't protesting on it. At first, she felt peculiar on herself that she was taking so much interest in a stranger but it felt oddly intimate too. She was suddenly groped with the urge to pry and find out about that pristinely dressed, handsome, well-mannered and inarticulated beauty. He had an excellent taste and he surely lived in a degree of comfort but something about him told her that those beautiful eyes saw so much dirt and pain before achieving the best. The scant amount of detail wasn't enough for Veronica. She, in all her curiosity, wanted to know everything about him. Did he read? If so, what genre? What kinda music did he liked? Does he cook? If so, what are his specialties? He wasn't one of those boring, rumbustious Americans who constantly argued about politics, he was a rather sweet talker who had neutral opinions which made her flatter herself even more._

_Months passed and her feelings began to grow even stronger than she could ever imagine. One evening, a casual conversation over a cup of coffee in her small apartment led to the talk of his life. She, for the first time in her life, broke apart in pieces listening to the beats of love in his voice as he told her about the blonde from his past. She wanted to scream and cry in front of him but more than that she wanted to capture those trembling lips into hers and make him forget about everything he ever tasted._

_"Your life is like a book filled with contemporary blank pages" she said on the day she asked him to be her husband. It was pretty unusual for everyone to see a woman on one knee in a fancy restaurant with tears in her eyes and holding out a ring to a man._

_"Does it bother you?" he asked entwining both of their hands together and embracing her close to him. She was breathing in his scent and wondering if she’ll ever take the place in his heart which belongs to the blonde enchantress. Sadly, the answer was no but still, she was happy that she had a piece of him that no one else had._

_"No! Those are the gaps I want to fill with my love" she told the truth smilingly and kissed him, standing on her tip-toes as the people around them cheered and laughed raising their glasses. They both laughed and cried in each other's arms that night. He thought he found his missing piece and she thought she found her happily ever after. The one she read about in books, the one her grandma told her about, the one she dreamt of since the beginning of time. Despite of her image being the rich bitch and stuck up Veronica Lodge, she always had a soft spot in her heart which he prickled out of her and she was grateful of him for doing that. She was always misunderstood as rude just because she was blunt about the reality around her. She never knew how to correct that and show the world what she really is but then he came and she became the best version of herself._

"I'm used to it now" she replied smilingly, putting her cup down and facing the window again. "Plus I love cooking" she happily announced.

"You're a superhero I swear" she giggled and took a sip of her coffee.

"Did you talk to Jug yet?"

"Yeah I did but" she stopped mid-sentence, lost in her thoughts.

"But?"

"He doesn't want me anywhere near Betty" she sighed and smiled with her eyes on the cup in her hands. "It's understandable tho"

"He'll get better Josie" Veronica smiled knowing exactly what he's doing. He just wants the best for Betty and she does too. Years of togetherness but still, sometimes she feels like she doesn't even know who he is but then again he somehow manages to convince her that he's the same Jughead she fell for, the same Jughead she gave her heart to, the same Jughead she fell in love with and she just closes her eyes and believes him. "He always does"

 

The only way to get a hold of history was the crappy press of the town which was, from the very beginning, spicing up things to endure the taste buds of the perfect people who wanted everything else but the truth. The walk down the memory lane was as shitty as he expected but there was no other way to it. Riverdale Central Library in all its mightiness stood tall in front of him. The same lousy architecture and design which hasn't been redecorated since 1857. Broken desks and big cracked up book boards with a pile of dust sitting on them with pride. He just wanted to take a hold of the Riverdale Register's editions from the 1990s. 

He spent four hours going through unnecessary details and fighting with the old librarian who wanted to close just because he was tired. Finally, the heavy nonsense of the ancestry of Riverdale ended with his search of the mysterious figure, Cheryl Blossom. He was a little shocked about what he found but deep down he knew that he could expect the worst from Andrews. 

George Andrews, Archie's grandfather was a cruel man who killed hundreds of people just for a piece of land he wanted from them. Drugs, weapons and even Serpents started in his reign. Fred Andrews succeeded his father after he was killed by a native but he was a good man, unlike his father. The crime rate dropped and drugs started to decline in the streets. That was the era in which Serpents rose to power and broke free from the Andrew heed. Fred lost them and they got out of his control. Riverdale tore into two parts, Southside and Northside which ultimately led to mass differences between locals. 

Fred Andrews married his ladylove Penelope in 1988 who died in 1990 while giving birth. Archie was alone from the very beginning. The gang wars, riots, and business got the best of Fred and Archie remained neglected. Then again, Fred remarried a red-headed enchantress from the wrong side of the tracks named Mary in 1994. Fred loved Mary with all his heart and she did too but her the shadows of her love never extended towards Archie. She always loathed him and treated him like a prisoner in his own house. The huge mansion haunted his little mind and he only had a bear and his bed in the whole wide world.

Archie's mind was slowly poisoned with fear and darkness and soon they became a part of his existence. He became the worst of himself and befriended the menace growing inside him. Then came Cheryl.

She was a beautiful red-headed nurse, appointed for Archie. She was a ray of sunlight and she loved Archie like her own son. She was sold to a monster when she was seventeen and when she gave birth, her child was snatched away from her. Her life wasn't really different from Archie. They both had a darkness inside them which kept on haunting them but they found comfort in each other. She found her son and Archie found a mother figure.

 

 

> **SHORT CIRCUIT OR ARSON? LOCAL RESIDENT CHERYL BLOSSOM KILLED IN A FIRE AT ANDREWS MANSION.**

 

_"Archie" a soft whisper tingled the little red-headed boy's sleep as she touched his hair slowly removing them from his eyes. "Wake up Archie. Look I'm here" she smiled still caressing his hair. His eyes were looking at something so unreal but he was a loveless and neglected child who never had anyone to talk to and she was just a mere illusion begging for freedom from the walls of the mansion she died in._

_"Aun-t Cheryl" his voice was surprised but amused to see her again. "You're alive?" suddenly his mellow voice turned a little melancholic like he was trying to wake up from the dream._

_"No baby Archie" she smiled, patting his back._

_“I s-saw her..Mary..f-fire” his sniffles were unstoppable and his voice stuttered while he tried to comprehend the difference between reality and fantasy but the line kept on blurring. His little sentences were interrupted by his own thoughts and images of what he witnessed, with his favorite teddy in his arms, he shivered in his bed. His little eyes were filled were horror and loneliness. She kept on touching the little red curl on his forehead in an attempt to calm him down._ _She was smiling and giggling while she wiped his little tears and kissed his small little hands, holding him close to her heart._

_“You must be dreaming baby” she cooed him, hugging him tightly. “I’m right here” she assured.  
_

_“Don’t leave me please” he begged, crying loudly in her chest. “Don’t leave me like mommy did”  
_

_“Oh, Archie” she kissed his little forehead. “I’ll be with you till your last breath”  
_

_It was not just a simple sentence or a mere phrase said to calm a little boy down. It was more like a promise which she kept. More like a vow, she made to herself, and she fulfilled it by disappearing into thin air the second the light of his life blinked and he died._

 

 _Arson? Short circuit? Cheryl died in a fire_ , he thought, punching his forehead. Cheryl was Archie's one and only. It wasn't just Cheryl who died that night, Archie did too. She was not an illusion, she was once real to the world but to Archie, she always thrived.

"Archie, himself, was Cheryl" she looked like she would start crying. Her eyes were heavy with under eyebags and cheeks were crimson. "She was dead but to Archie, everything except her was an illusion. She became a part of his brain, a part of his subconscious that made him do his worst" she concluded slowly as the wreck of a man sitting in front of him started questioning himself, that how he got here from in between the pile of old and dusty newspapers, and now he was sitting on a chair across her with a slight sly on her face. "Cheryl was not evil" she said bobbing her head side to side. "It was the darkness inside Archie that made her something else, just so he could fulfill his needs the way he wanted"

"I'm sorry Betty" they were the only words that left his mouth when he saw the look of despair on her face. It was not easy being in the same room as a man who loves a shadow and everything else doesn't matter to him. "I need more proof for tomorrow" he sighed and both his fists met his forehead.

"Sometimes you go out of your way to punish yourself" she whispered after a pregnant pause and smiled. "Maybe letting Archie in was my way"

"Betty?" he asked shaking his head, trying to get to the point she was standing on.

"My way.." she whispered again. "For letting you go" the gleam in her eyes was an unforgettable sight for him. She sighed and walked out of the room with yet another guard dragging her out, leaving him alone with his guilt, that he concluded will eat him from inside someday.

 

"Only way to con a con" she smiled as she set down a pile of money in front of the brunette who rolled her eyes at the menacing red-head.

"He's not a con mom" she barked back and stood and walked over to the window sill that faced the deadly town. "Nor will he debase himself"

"You're telling me that he's here to stay?" she laughed and got up from her seat. She wasn't going to lie, it felt good to be back on her feet after so long. She was loving every moment of strength and power she felt in her body and this time she wasn't going to let it go. "There must be some way to get him off of his feet"

"The only way to do that is to fight him" she announced, still facing the window. "He prefers truth but me? I only prefer fight" a sly appeared on the corners of her lips as she walked back to the table. "He's my way to the sky mom! Why would I want him to leave?"

"So what are you gonna do Toni?" she eventually shouted, tired by her childish behavior. "He'll win and Elizabeth will be out exposing us!"

"No Mary!" she shouted back. "I'm just doing it my way"

"And what exactly is that?"

"Nobody cares about the truth in this town, everyone wants drama and I know exactly how I can kill two birds with one stone"

"You're being ridiculous Toni!" she sighed and fell back in her chair.

"I'm being real" she corrected. "I know the streets of this town more than you'll ever do mom and I know what it'll take them to accept me" she smiled grimly and chugged on the drink she had in her hands. 

 

  

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the next chap will be the trial!!!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Peeps! we survived a long week of tabloids, fake news, and rumors although we knew more than they did, some of us were a little sad and anxious but the light that came from the end of the tunnel called 'RELIABLE SOURCES' helped us all get up on our feet again and now I'm here to spoil your fun with this un-edited, crappy and rushed chapter because I can't stand on my feet and my brain hurts.  
> Bonus feature: i'm SO SICK RN so plz pray I don't die before finishing this story.  
> too-fuckin-dles.

 

"What do you mean the prosector found another witness?" she said slamming her hands on the table. Just when she thought she felt a little tingle on the end of the tunnel everything falls apart like this. Jughead looked into her scared eyes and tried to calm her down again. 

"You just have to tell the truth Betty!" he said for a billionth time in that hour but her face didn't change. She was nervous, anxious and worried as hell. It was melting hot outside but still, she somehow managed to shiver. It was not easy being a victim and being behind bars for it. It was not easy being Elizabeth Cooper. He studied her carefully and with queer eyes. He wanted all the pain inside her eyes to just vanish away and he was determined to do that.

"What if I..just..couldnt?" she sighed and ran her hands through her hair with her eyes closed and then slightly slammed them on the table. 

"Whatever they have Betty" he shouted. "It won't last I promise"

"I don't remember anyone else being there except one" she said rubbing her hands together. 

"Apparently, another witness testified in the police station last night but I still don't know who they are" he tapped his feet on the ground. "The details about them are under wraps due to some 'SAFETY REASONS' and so-called 'RELIABLE SOURCE' they are as named from the Andrews"

"They know how to twist off the truth" she sighed and his hands held her head in anger and tension.

"Remember.," he whispered. "Remember what I told you at the B&G? When your mom and-" she shot her head up and shook it silently. It was not a good time to bring back such memories but she still went on with them. She had no choice in that matter. She had no choice where her heart took her to. "You're still that Betty" he assured again by putting his hands on hers. "And we're gonna get through it this time too"

 

_"You're so much stronger than all the lies and the pain Betty"_ _he whispered in her hair as she cried in his arms. "You never lose if you're strong-" her sobs were tearing the silence of the Blue and Gold room. She had no way out. Everything in front of her was crumbling down. Her psycho father returned to Riverdale and her mother was sick, almost close to death and the only hope she had was him. "-and you're the strongest girl I've ever seen so don't let go" he hugged her even tighter as she inhaled his scent and took his embrace like he was her everything. In fact, at that moment of comfort, he was everything to her. Everything she ever wanted, everything she ever wished for, everything she ever embraced._

 

She shivered again, this time for a completely different reason. His touch. It was the same even after a decade and she could not believe where her mind was taking her. Their hands slowly intertwined as she got lost in his eyes. The warmth of his palms was soothing and suddenly she just wanted him to touch him. Maybe his intertwined fingers help her pick up her crumbling pieces and join them together like lego. It felt like was in a stare-off with no promising winners. Both of them were burning their eyes into each other's souls. It was a connection so pure and so different that they could feel the heat and warmth of love radiating from their bodies. Meanwhile, he was a pile of a hot mess on the floor and there was no going back now. All his pride of the self-control and ability to not let things affect him was looking so silly now. He couldn't believe it was so easy to fall back into old habits but now, he was experiencing it in the most deadliest time of his life. Sadly it was all a blink after all and it ended with one too when a voice tore their moment from behind them.

"There you are" a pretty voice filled both of their ears with sweetness. Her eyes were looking for her prince as she tried to pace back and forth and it looked like she finally found the light she was looking for. She smiled ear to ear, the signature one that could melt hearts around her.  

"Hey! What are you doing here?" he asked with a slight grin. He was sure glad to see her but he doesn't want her to get the wrong idea of his and Betty's affiliation but as always her reaction took him by surprise and he remembered that the book called 'Veronica Lodge' still has many pages which need to be turned.

She drove her wheelchair to where Betty was standing and greeted while looking closely. Her curious side was now kicking in. _Is she still the same as Jughead described?_  she asked herself while examining her. _I guess I'll find out soon enough._  

"You must be Betty" she blinked at her face like the camera in her mind was capturing her. That's when she realized what Jughead saw in her. She was extremely beautiful and her smile could light up a dead mind. Although she was treated like crap in jail but still, it felt like she was the most beautiful woman in the whole world even without makeup. Her blonde locks were tied up in a ponytail with a simple dress embracing her body but she looked mesmerizing and Veronica asked herself, how could somebody possibly hurt such a girl.

Betty nodded and smiled, shaking the hand she offered with a warm smile.

"I'm Veronica!" she announced happily. "Jughead's fiance" 

The words hit Betty like a whirlwind but she kept up the smiling facade. Her eyes suddenly went down to her lifeless legs than at Jughead's face. He knew what she was thinking. After all these years he still knows how to perfectly read her questioning eyes. She literally felt like she was shot. Jughead having someone in his life was somehow fine for her but her negative side was slowly kicking in.  _She is paralyzed?_ she kept on asking herself. Once again she remembered how much Jughead loves putting back the broken pieces of a whole. Like he did to her and now it was Veronica's turn. Betty could've sworn that she saw the audible and visible fear and pain behind the smile that was plastered on Veronica's face. It was a look of death, love, and purity. She, herself lived in such a condition for a long long time. She had everything she wanted around her but still, something was missing and now she saw herself in Veronica like she was a mirror of her past. Once wholesome, now broken and lost. Veronica could fool everybody in the world with the happy facade but not someone like Betty who've been through it already.

"Jug" she softly whispered and he turned his attention to her from Betty. "She! is waiting for you outside" she sternly said, filtering out the words 'Josie' and 'McCoy' from her sentences because the last thing Betty would want will be a best friend from past and an anger attack before the trial of her life.

He nodded and left them both in the room assuring Betty that he'll be back soon. She was constantly fidgeting with her hands and her nervousness was evident in her shivering sighs. Veronica saw her and she could've sworn that she saw this look before and on no one else but herself. They were so alike in so many aspects. She made a mental note to herself to ask Jughead if he has a type. He likes fixing broken things but the two ladies in this room were a total picture of misery and Veronica was concerned about Jughead's mental stability and deadly fetishes.

"Are you okay Betty?" Veronica asked reaching for her bag and bringing out a bottle. "Here! have some" she offered water to her and she accepted instantly. Betty was not going to lie about how her throat was killing her. The water touched her insides like a relaxant. Like water splashed on fire. She was now used to of what she was provided in the cell and although it was purified it still tasted like crap. She gulped the whole bottle down and gave it back to her with a slight expression of embarrassment. The bottled water felt really refreshing. 

"Sorry I drank it all" she said wiping her lips and smiling.

She shrugged her hands and laughed. "It's okay" she knew just how hard it was for Betty to be in a situation like this but she was going to change that with her signature style. Her father's voice echoed in her ears _'Mija, if you can't embrace it, change it'_   she always took the dominating advice the way her father wanted, in a negative way but now she wasn't the Veronica Lodge she was five years ago. She've now learned to embrace things and she was getting good at it but in this case, it was the opposite. She was going to befriend the silence and darkness that Betty had filled inside her and then change it by her ways. She wished that before the flame of her life flickers, she'll have some good deeds done and mending a broken soul was on top of her list.

Veronica was beautiful inside and out, and that too, was her side she realized she had when Jughead came into her life. She knew that to mend one heart you have to join another broken one to it, to form a whole and she was going to do that in the most silent way possible. So silent that no one will ever know where everything started to fall back in and she fell out.

"You're nervous Betty" she unconsciously grabbed her hands that hung lifelessly from her body and realized what softness she possessed in them. "Everything's gonna be okay"

Betty smiled and nodded at her warmth and friendly gesture realizing how beautiful she was for making her feel welcome even after knowing who and what she was. Betty realized how selfish she would've been if she was here in Veronica's place.

"By the way what are you doing once you get out?" she asked with a huge smile as if she was sure. Betty just shook her head a little in disbelief of what she was saying. "What? You haven't planned yet?" she giggled and Betty smiled on her hopefulness.

"I-I don't even know if I'll ever get out" she let out a big sigh she was holding onto for too long that her head was contracted. She looked out of the window and what she saw was so dreamy and beautiful. She wondered if she'll ever get out of that hell-hole and walk freely on the roads with the feel of traffic and people in her surroundings. She closed her eyes and felt the cold air tickling her skin. She tripped her head back and felt the rays of sunshine on her face. She was so fed up from the dusty and windowless cell that the crappy courthouse felt less entrapping to her.

"Whatever you say" Veronica said in a different tone. Her accent was not like the previous, it was exciting. "But when you get out! We're going shopping" she announced and both of them laughed. Betty felt like she was her best friend for ages. Both of them giggled with their hands intertwined with each other.

Betty could've sworn that Veronica was the nicest girl she'd ever met and she was never going to let go such a beautiful soul. She'd already lost so many good people in her life. Some of them because she was too egoistic and some of them because fate always hated her happiness. Both of them instantly turned to face Jughead who just barged inside the room.

"Its time Betty" his grave voice broke the sweet moment between the new best friends who were giggling while holding hands, just like silly school girls. His face was pale and cold and he was now holding a file in his hands which caught both of their attention at once.

"What's that?" they spoke in unison and then looked at each other while Jughead looked at the circus in front of him, confusingly.

"These...are your reports I'm presenting to the jury" he said in a determined voice. Both of them watched Betty's expressions change quickly on a possible apocalypse in her life. She almost fainted and her mind whirled in fear. _Reports? Her reports? Did he go back all the way to get them?_ her mind was now visualizing all the negative aspects that could happen to him for bringing such evidence in the court. 

 

_He stood up and casually walked to the table with the green vinyl cloth on it. It was facing the black frame in the corner of his bedroom and he roamed calmly as if no one else is in there. The carelessness on his face indicated that he had no real intention of backing away despite her silent screams of mercy._

_He filled up the syringe with the liquid and turned around where he found a shadow smiling at him and he smiled back. Betty was still breathless and shivering, tied to a corner of the bedroom. Imprisoned in her own home. He threw the Benadryl bottle into the trash can and made his way towards her again holding it up in the air._

_"Archie..please I beg you" she pleaded as he picked up the needle and grabbed her arms but it was no use. "I can't take it anymore" she cried and tried to free her arms from his tight grip. Her voice was weak and her skin was paler than ever. "I'm dying" she begged with the little leftover strength in her._

_"I'm sorry" he said softly brushing off the hair from her face slowly. He cupped her stained cheeks in his hands and kissed her forehead with affection that she never understood. "I promise I won't let you die, okay?" he assured injecting her arms. She cried out and struggled but it started kicking in instantly and she felt all her strength fading away into thin air. "If I don't do what she said, she'll be so angry with me"_

_Betty wanted to protest and shout at him that what he was doing to her on the commands of a shadow was slowly killing her from inside but she didn't have the power to form words and speak them. She felt dizzy and slowly passed out in his arms and he smiled into the oblivion._

"Didn't I asked you, not to go back?" she asked with tears stinging from her eyes because of multiple reasons. The dreadful memories, the sick taste of drugs in her blood and the fear for Jughead's life were keeping her on the bay. _Am I worth it?_ she asked herself. _Am I really worth the sacrifice of someone who is a ray of hope and light in this dark world?_ she will never forgive herself if anything ever happened to Jughead.

"I'm here as your lawyer Betty. It's my duty" he ignored her question because he was fed up with how she was constantly pushing away all the people who wanted to help her. He casually walked towards Veronica's wheelchair and held it tightly from the handles. She hoped up her face and grabbed his hand from behind with a comforting rub. The scene made Betty's stomach twist but she casually looked away just so she won't look like a crazy jealous ex-girlfriend. "I found something else, too" 

"What else?" Veronica asked trying to loosen up the awkwardness.  
 

"I found out where Cheryl Blossom is buried" he confessed silently, twitching his lips together. 

"What? Where?" Betty felt herself tremble a little. She had never been looked like the way she looked like now. Face shrunk and pale, lips trembling and body losing balance running over thoughts.

"In the basement of Andrews mansion"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TAKE A SHOT EVER TIME TONI SAYS 'OBJECTION'

 

 

Jughead stood and paused for a moment. His eyes were constantly roaming between Betty, Veronica and then Toni who stood there with a smirk on her face. He walked up to the judge, where the curious crowd behind him could also listen. Many of them were reporters and press. Betty felt like the benches were even more uncomfortable than the jail beds were and to say that she was nervous was an understatement. Mary and Alice sat there parallel to each other and then there was Veronica who was constantly smiling at Jughead every chance she got, just to keep his spirits up.

“My client Ms. Cooper was allegedly seen holding a knife on Archie Andrews dead body” He paused to look at Toni, then continued even louder. “Although she is innocent” The crowd behind him gasped. “Until proven guilty” he continued, with one finger high in the air, “Mrs. Andrews should know better” He said looking towards Mary's confused frame and with full force, he slammed his hands on the opposing attorney’s desk. Toni could've sworn that she never saw a man who was this much capable, in front of her. He shook her to the core but she was still determined to dethrone him.

“I demand to call Mr. Fangs Fogarty to the stand” he said out loud as people of the press started naming down the contents he spoke. A young man with black hair, presumably in his mid-twenties, walked slowly and hesitatingly over to the stand.

Jughead took a minute to analyze his nervousness. He was shaking a little bit and definitely hiding something but Jughead was determined to find it out. 

"Mr. Fogarty" he said assessing his confusion. "Can I have your brief introduction please?"

"I-I'm F-Fangs Fogarty and I-I am 23 and I'm serving in Andrews Mansion since I was 14" he concluded, still not making eye contact with him.

“Well, Mr. Fogarty" Jughead started again. "Is it true that at 2:00 Am in the morning on 20th February, you were standing outside Mr. Andrew's bedroom?”

“Y-yes I was” the man said in a quiet voice; barely anyone could hear him. The crowd leaned in, scooting to the edge of their seats with curiosity in their eyes.

“And what did you saw there?” Jughead continued. 

Fangs lowered her head and kept quiet for a moment. His mind was fidgeting insanely.

“What did you see Mr. Fogarty?” he repeated with a patient voice.

Fangs looked up again and his eyes met with Toni's. He shivered a little and began. 

“I-I saw Ms. C-Cooper with a knife in her hands” he said and suddenly began to cry. The room started to buzz with whispers and gasps.

“Order!” the Judge demanded with a stern voice.

“And exactly what were you doing at 2 in the morning outside Mr. Andrew's room?” he asked walking away from the stand to the Jury's bench.

"I-I heard screams s-so I went up to see if anything was wrong in there"

Jughead smiled and walked over to the jury bench again.

"Think again Mr. Fogarty. You may be missing something" he said in an attempt to make him nervous and he was succeeding blissfully while he caressed his own chin. 

"I object your honor" Toni interjected standing up straight. "Attorney Jones is trying to upset Mr. Fogarty"

"Oh I would never do that" he had an evil smile on his face that Toni recognized way too perfectly.

"Objection overruled" the Judge claimed and Toni's face went blank while Jughead smiled again and proceeded.

"Think of another reason why you could be at the door at 2 AM" 

Drops of sweat appeared on his forehead and he started fidgeting with his hands.

"I-Why would I be there without any reason?" he said looking down at the ground.

"Well, I suggest you do a nice deal of homework next time you're called into courthouse Mr. Fogarty" he said and his response attained multiple whispers and gasps from the people sitting in the crowd. 

The Judge crossed a look of slight confusion.

"Your honor! The bedroom Mr. Andrews lived in was soundproof" he said looking at Betty, who had a glimmer of hope crinkling in the corners of her eyes. He smiled and turned back again. "It had in-built panels of metal, slightly visible in this picture" he said showing him a highlighted picture of the room. "There wasn't any way Mr. Fogarty could've heard whatever noises he's implying so that means he lied under oath not once but multiple times" 

"Objection your honor!" Toni said again, this time her eyes were wide and her face showed a nice deal of horror.

"Objection overruled" once again she sat back, sighing heavily. Her eyes met with Mary's and she had the same ordeal in her eyes.

"Thank you Mr. Fogarty" he said and Fangs with his head seemingly on the ground turned back to the seating area.

Next, it was Betty's turn and it was the most anticipated for the crowd as the case turned into the other direction pretty quickly. Toni was furious as she made her way to where Betty was standing and proceeded.

"Ms. Cooper" Toni said folding her arms in front of her stand. 

Betty looked over at Jughead and she was instantly more confident. She gained power by losing herself in his deep-set of green eyes full of determination as he smiled at her. She asked herself if she even deserved him? He was too good and pure for her. One look on his face and she instantly knew how to handle the bitch that stood in front of her.

"As this is your first trial with a respectable attorney, let's recall the events again, shall we?" she said directed towards Betty with the same resting bitch face and Jughead rolled his eyes in annoyance."What exactly happened that night between you and your husband?"

"I told the court multiple times" she started. "Archie was trying to kill me. I just defended myself" 

"But you never had any solid evidence about it" she teased back with a stern expression. "And you have no witness of it"

"Because it was 2 AM in the morning and we were alone"

"But Mr. Fogarty, the 'only witness of the scene'..." she said emphasizing it. "...told the court otherwise"

"Mr. Fogarty lied about the real reason he was there at 2 AM so who knows how much he lied about?" Betty shot back and Jughead smiled in his seat. She was doing great up there and he was assured that he'll get what he wants because The Andrews were entrapping themselves in their own web by planting a weak plot.

Toni's face went blank as she twitched her eyes and blinked. She couldn't believe what she was watching in front of her eyes. 

"How would you explain your fingerprints on the knife Ms. Cooper" her voice was stern now. "That's not something anyone can fake!"

"That knife had my husband's fingerprints too"

"Because he was trying to defend himself from you" she shot back looking at the Jury.

"Or it was the complete otherwise" Jughead interrupted standing up from his seat and tying up a button on his coat. "Do you have any other questions Attorney Topaz?"

She nodded and jumped back in her assigned seat where she could clearly hear Mary mumbling something under her breath. 

"I have something that can prove that Mr. Archie Andrews was abusing his wife, my client Ms. Cooper" he slowly slid the file on the table and began pacing towards the stand.

"Ms. Cooper can you give a brief narrative on your drug lapse" he softly spoke.

Betty's eyes started getting dark and broody. He knew exactly how hard it was for her to tell these things in front of strangers. She'd been through hell and no one was there for her but when she finally escaped, she earned questioning and judging eyes surrounding her in a suffocating manner.

"Archie.." she started looking away from him. His eyes had sympathy and softness for her but she couldn't afford to get lost in those right now so she decided to look away. "He used to drug me...every night with Benadryl"

The crowd once again gasped and whisperings started to come from the seating stands.

"Why is that?" Jughead said cocking an eyebrow at her.

"Archie had an acute case of Schizophrenia" she confessed still looking down at the ground. At this point, tears had started to sting the corners of her eyes and she was trying to hold them back as long as she'll be able to. "He hallucinated a woman named Cheryl and sh-she used to make him do things like these"

"Cheryl! as in Ms. Cheryl Blossom?" he said directing towards Mary whose face was now blank and blue. "The one who died in a fire at Andrews Mansion and is buried in the Mansion graveyard?"

Betty nodded fervently and tears dropped from her face to her neck.

"Respected Jury! I would like you to take a look at the data of the restricted reports of Ms. Cooper. It states that she unintentionally overdosed on Benadryl because she was insomniac" he continued, looking at her trembling condition. "When in fact, she was being drugged by her own husband almost every night and these reports show it with clear bolded words"

"Ms. Cooper" Judge said putting his glasses down. "The prosecution demands a sane gesture in the stands. Do you need a break?" he respectfully stated.

She nodded in disagreement and controlled herself from trembling. 

"She suffered this abuse for several months. Initially, it was an occasional matter but soon it became an everyday thing and one morning she collapsed"

"Objection-" Toni stood up to utter something but was turned down by the Judge immediately. Her breathing got tense, eyes went wide and a storm raged on inside her but unlike Mary she was good at faking her facade.

"The reports were hidden, the press and the media was unable to reach out to such a big matter just because Mr. Andrews was hiding behind it all and he couldn't afford his repute being tarnished"

The Judge nodded and started writing on the pad in front of him.

"Do you want to say anything Ms. Cooper" the Judge asked and she nodded in response while uttering a small 'no'

Jughead shot up and reached out a hand to gesture a continuation. 

"I might have something else that I want to share in this courthouse sir!" he interjected grabbing a newspaper from 97's edition and placing it in front of Betty. “Can you please read what this says Ms. Cooper. Loud enough so that the people in the back can hear you” he said handing her the paper and embracing her with his eyes. He had a glimmer of hope that she always caught and he was the only one who could pull her out of the darkness she was stranded in.

Betty stood straight, wiped a few tears from her red eyes and started reading. “Local resident Cheryl Blossom killed in a fire at Andrews Mansion”

He nodded and took back the paper from her hands. “Thank you Ms. Cooper” he said turning towards the Judge again. "This article shows that Ms. Cheryl Blossom died in a fire and is buried in Mansion graveyard because she had no family"

"What does this have to do with this case, Attorney Jones?" The Judge asked curiously.

"Ms. Blossom is the core reason of this case!" he scoffed a little. "I'm trying to prove my points through pieces of evidence, step by step"

The Judge nodded and went back to examining. This was a sign that the Judge was clearly invested and satisfied by the given shreds of evidence and it was Jughead's cue to take the lead.

With a brand new attitude, Jughead went back to the stand. “Did Mr. Andrews ever mentioned Ms. Blossom?”

Betty nodded and sighed. "Multiple times but I come to know the whole story after I pressured him into going to a therapist"

"Therapist?" he said cocking an eyebrow.

"Af-after my drug lapse h-he promised that he'll get help and he won't do anything like this again but-" she bobbed her head and wiped down the tears that left her eyes. Jughead, with all his might, was trying to back away or he'll crumble down just by looking at her. She was at the point of sobbing. "He gained a little composure when he told me about the supposed fire at the kitchen when he was a child"

"Can you be specific Ms. Cooper?" the Judge cocked in and raised his eyebrows. 

Betty looked at Jughead and he nodded a little, giving her strength.

"He told me that his mother started the fire that killed Cheryl! It was not short-circuiting or an accident. It was arson and planned!" Once again the crowd started whispering and reporters began to anxiously note all the little details that she spurred and Jughead smirked while looking Betty proudly.

"Objection your honor! Attorney Jones and his client are trying to defame Mr. Andrews and his mother" she spurred furiously.

"I may have proof" he interjected and Toni was forced to sit back when he overruled.

He nodded at Jughead to continue.

"Your honor!" he continued. "I request a search warrant in the lower basement of Andrews mansion and in the graveyard where Ms. Blossom is supposedly buried"

The Judge roamed his eyes towards Toni and then back at Jughead.

"That's all for today" he said and smiled a gesture toward the Judge while making his way back to his seat and Betty did the same. 

He smiled towards Betty and controlled her still trembling hands by putting his hands on her little ones. He assured her of the best just by this gesture. Veronica was smiling so wide and just couldn't control it. She knew that Jughead did so well and she was also convinced that they are finally reaching a light.

"Jug" she whispered. "Why didn't they present the new witness?" she asked slowly.

"I don't know" he confessed sighing. "Maybe they decided to keep it down low till the case is in their favor again" he felt Betty tense under his touch on his words but he instantly smiled."But that's not gonna happen" he assured and she just nodded, trusting him with her life again.

After several minutes the Judge ordered and a complete silence filled the room again.

"In the light of facts provided by Attorney Forsythe Jones on behalf of Ms. Elizabeth Cooper, the jury has reached a provisionary verdict that Ms. Cooper should immediately be transferred from cell to house arrest until the next hearing, due to lack of evidence against her and Attorney Jones is expected to present more pieces of evidence to prove the testimony of Mr. Andrews mental disorders. Moreover, Mr. Fangs Fogarty is sentenced five years of prison and 50,000$ fine for perjury under oath. Furthermore, the court issues a search warrant in Andrews mansion effective immediately" 

Betty's face lit up immediately and she gasped at the verdict while Jughead did the same. Veronica squealed a little and held Alice's hand as both of them smiled. Fangs, on the other hand, was having a hard time digesting the fact that he was being sentenced. Same with Toni and Mary who thought they had this case was in their hands, were now overlooking and rethinking everything they still have left to turn.

"It is not required that you testify. If you choose to, the prosecution has the right to cross-examine you" The Judge continued looking at Fangs who was brought to the stands again. "Testimony should be restricted to facts and the charges and if you choose to lie under oath you will be punished. If you weren't the one who called the police and informed them about the incident or if they didn't have your statement of that night, you would've been sentenced for ten years Mr. Fogarty, for lying because all of it would be invalid" he concluded with a disgusted look.

"The court is adjourned until the search warrant in Andrew's mansion is utilized" he said standing up from his seat as the whole courthouse rose. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im tired.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter!i hate this chapter! i ha-

 

 

"Throw some holy water on me, I suggest" he laughed sipping from the cup in his hands.

"Jug!" Betty chuckled in an alarming tone as if she's warning him.

The TV blazed in the background with the same spiced up news blaring from them. Reporters and media outlets echoed on the sudden turning point of the twisted tale of Riverdale's very own 'In Cold Blood' 

_"The case took a turning point when Elizabeth Cooper's attorney presented the reverse pieces of evidence that Archie Andrews was mentally unstable and the court was adjourned on the provisionary verdict that Elizabeth Cooper would be put on house arrest instead of jail cell and Andrews Mansion will be searched for a possible suspected dead body of Cheryl Marjorie Blossom who was a local Riverdale resident..."_

"I'm entering the demon's territory today" he laughed clicking the keys on the remote to low down the volume and proceeded to the coffee table. He shook his head and smiled lightheartedly. Jughead couldn't believe she was making him do this. He ignored that man for almost a decade because he had nothing but complaints and venom to spit on him and now he's here! Getting ready to go meet the most unpleasant personality he's ever encountered just because his fiance is forcing him. "I can't believe Ronnie is making me do this"

"He's your father! Not a demon Jug" she slowly shifted the sheets up to her legs and drank from her cup.

It was good to be back in an actual bed, in between soft linen sheets that weren't rough and smelled like local detergent. Jughead was also so tense when Betty was in jail but since that hearing, he's rather fuzzy and lighthearted like a burden rolled off of his shoulders.

"Same thing" he replied, smiling. "I don't know Betty! What am I gonna say to him?" he narrowed his eyes on her and she chuckled.

"I don't know! He's your father...How about a 'Hello' for starters?"

"Yeah hello dad, just checking in to see if you still run a gang with a bunch of creeps and drowning yourself in liquor and whiskey?"

"You could start by telling him about your engagement" she lowly whispered, bending her head down with a fake big smile on her face.

No matter how much she pushed that thought away it always came back rolling and she hurt even more. It was supposed to be her not Veronica.

"Last time I talked to him..he said that he doesn't wanna see me because I let him down by following my dreams so I don't think he would be too pleased by this news" he sighed looking back at that awful day when he grabbed a knife and cut out his own tattoo in front of his father. He left the Serpent territory that day and vowed to never go back but that too, with all other vows were going to break itself today.

"Well...you could try. He is a good man, I know it"

He smiled again and looked at her, sitting on the bed peacefully and just throwing smiles at him. Her smile reminded him of the good old days when they used to hang out in Betty's bedroom, casually stealing kisses and wilding.

They were many things but being innocent was not one of them. A wild duo of teenagers from the different side of tracks. Rebellious and so in love. Their moments were often interrupted by Alice Cooper by both of them knew how to push past her and have fun.

He sneaked Betty out so many times when they just went to the old, abandoned Southside and made out on the cliff, they first made love on. Their sweet dates at Drive-In which often turned into something sinful. It all just kept on wobbling in his mind and he hated himself for zoning out like that especially when she's sitting right in front of him.

 

_Betty wiggled breathlessly her hands were held together tightly above her dizzy head. As much as she loved it she wanted to stop for other reasons, not because she doesn't want to do it, it was just one big problem. She looked at his eagerness. He was so turned on and so was she but they were in public. He pulled back from her lips and they both took a deep breath when she saw Jughead's hand on his zipper. She could feel him hardening against her thighs and she heard his sharp breathing and darkening eyes as he looked at her._

 " _Juggie stop!" She muttered. Eyes wide opened and mouth gasping for air._

 

 

_"What-wh-why?" he tore his hands away from his zipper and she could tell he was hurt. It wasn't really hurt, it was guilt that maybe he pushed her way too far and she wasn't ready but it was the exact opposite of that. "I thought y-you wanted that" he embarrassedly admitted._

_"No Juggie! I-I do want it" she sighed looking at his face. "I just-I don't want my first time to be at the Drive-In for fuck sake!"_

_Jughead gripped Betty's thigh gently before un-straddling her as he felt her breath coming back to normal. His eyes rolled back in his head as she licked her lips._

_"Oh" he said scratching his head. He was so lost in the moment that he didn't realize that they were in the middle of the road at the Drive-In and loads of people were around them._

_Thank God the movie was so loud that no one heard Betty's virgin moans otherwise it would be an embarrassment._

_"FRANKLY MY DEAR, I DON'T GIVE A DAMN" Rhett Butler said these last words to Scarlett' O Hara in the background of the mess they were making and Jughead had the same thought in his mind. He was too hard to give a damn right now so he did what had to be done._

_Betty moaned when he frantically joined their lips together and he made his way in her mouth, the sensation made Betty cry out of ecstasy. She reached toward the hand Jughead still had on her thigh. He slowly whacked at her bundle of nerves earning a long hard gasp in his mouth. They'd done this a couple times before and Betty was now pretty comfortable but the blushing innocent face she pulls off after he's done with her was Jughead's favorite._

_"Jug" she breathed hard in his mouth while his tongue explored her. "You're a fucking idiot" she giggled._

_"You don't wanna watch this movie, right Betts?" he asked, smirking close to her skin while his fingers worked hard at her bottom._

_"N-no" she murmured rolling her eyes in pleasure._

_"Good girl" he gently tugged on her throat bringing her forward to kiss again. He was a pro as in between the kiss he shrugged off her panties and slid them in his pocket. He slowly lowered her down to the seat again. She just looked at him struck while he straightened her clothes and fixed her hair and then she earned a big slap on her ass._

_"Why the fuck would you do that?" she murmured folding her arms. He pressed his mouth again to hers before opening and sinking. Betty arched her back into his body, pressing forward. She was deep into the kiss again when he pulled back and without a word, started driving._

_"You're making me unbelievably horny"_

 

He felt so unfaithful thinking about his past with Betty that way but he just couldn't help himself in that matter. Everything in his mind was so crystal clear as if it happened yesterday. His mind was constantly going back to the wrong places.

Veronica was everything. His light, his courage even his strength and power but she was not Betty. Veronica can be the last one but she can't be his first love ever. That thought cut him deep and he mentally kicked himself for thinking like that.

"You always look for the good in people. How do you even do that?" he mumbled under his breath.

 

_"Light can only elicit from within the darkness"_

 

"Light can only elicit from within the darkness" Betty smiled and took a sip again from her favorite teacup.

His eyes widened on her response as he looked back from the mirror to her again. Her crinkling eyes shined bright with light. There was no way she could be real. There was no way he could rip apart her picture from his mind. There was no way he could forgive himself for playing with so many hearts. There was no way for him to stop torturing himself for being so selfish and thinking about his first love when all Veronica deserved was the world and he, for his own composure linked their hearts together to mend his broken one.

_You are selfish!_

He sat down on the edge of her bedside and took her hands in his. "Are you okay..?" he asked concerningly looking at Betty's soft hands as if he wanted to touch them. Suddenly the image of last night came in front of his eyes.

_The squished charcoal on the floor beside the bed and the black stains on Veronica's hands. Her tear-stained cheeks and trembling body. She was crying and begging to the Lord to give her strength so she could let go and that sight broke Jughead's heart. If he wouldn't enter the house that instant the scene would've been different and worse._

_"You're slipping from my mind" she cried in his arms. "My memories are fading" the ashes in her trembling hands were the evidence of the condition of her heart._

_"It's nothing Ronnie" he reassured. "You'll be okay" he said patting her back, holding back tears._

_"I don't want these memories to turn to ashes" she whispered sobbing. "They are all I have left"_

 

"I-I think yes" she smiled back at him. Her smile was her strength. It was something she often used to fake a facade. "How's Veronica?"

He choked back a sigh and shook his head. "She-she's a little disturbed and I think I have to take her back to her neuro physician"

"Oh" she said bobbing her head. "I'm sorry" she softly said but something inside her was convincing that she wasn't sorry at all and she had to fight herself to control these selfish urges.

"I think I should go now...I need to meet my father" he smiled getting up from the edge.

"Yeah" she smiled. "I think I need another nap" she chuckled softly.

Her eyes were gleaming like she wanted to say something but she held back because it was all that she could do after everything he'd done for her.

 

 _Don't go!_   she could beg him right now.

 _I don't want to!_   he could've said if she stopped him. 

 _Maybe some other day when the stars align!_ said fate.

He eloped her in a quick hug. She took in his scent and it was surprisingly the same. She smiled in response as tears welled up in her eyes and he left for the driveway. 

 

 _"Light can only elicit from within the darkness"_   The blissful memory kept on playing in his mind.

_"Oh come on Betty!" he scoffed, lighting up a cigarette that dangled from his mouth. "It's my father we're talking about. The Devil's pawn"_

_"Throw that thing away" she said making an angry face._

_"Easy mother Teresa. It's just a cigarette" he laughed carelessly nuzzling his nose on her pink cheeks._

_"I'll mold that in your skin" she threatened frowning._

_"I'd love to see you do that" he laughed but she wasn't in the mood to joke. "It's just a cigarette Betts, relax!"_

_"These kinda things make you an addict Jughead and they have a license to kill" she spat making an angry face._

_"How many anti-narcotics seminars did you attend?" he attempted to joke again but failed miserably when there wasn't any response from the other end._

_"Do you wanna end up like the person you hate? The one who couldn't take care of his family because he can't control himself?" her tone was concerned and harsh. It hit him like a big cannonball. She softly held his face in both her hands and pulled him close smilingly._

_She was right._

_She was always right._

_He sighingly rolled her eyes looking into hers and smiled softly. He nodded his head a little and threw the damn thing away stepping on it._

_"You're a pain in my ass" he smiled, shaking his head a little._

_It was what kept him going._

_Betty was what kept him going. She was his light which elicited from his_ _own darkness. The darkness which was his family and his situation._

"You!" he shouted, looking at his own reflection in the mirror. "You. Are going to ruin so many lives" his teeth were gritted and fists were bundled. He hit the dashboard in front of him repeatedly. He had no other option but to blame himself for thinking like this. He was surely going to ruin many lives just because his heart and mind belonged to two different women.

 

"Stop!" her little smile faded when he said these words, tears began to sting on the corners of his light green beautiful eyes as he continued to speak.

It was hard. 

It was harsh but who had the power to stop it? No one!

No one could do anything to halt her. No one could do anything to pause the very moments they spend together but she longed for them either way.

She longed for him to love her always but it was such a selfish thought so she brushed it away and prayed for his better composure. She wished he won't fall down like she pictured him.

She hoped he will remember her forever since their 'forever' was ending way too quickly.

She could just hope that a forever like this would never happen to anyone, ever.

"Can you come?" she spoke after a pregnant pause, looking at the screen. "Please?" she was practically begging and smiling at the same time. She just wanted to see him once.

Miles apart but still both of them knew the condition of eachother's hearts. Both of them could hear the crumbling, the shattering and lifelessness the darkness brewed inside.

"V!" he spoke from the other end as he saw her eyes stinging with tears. "Please don't say it like that! I'll definitely come as soon as I can but please.."

"Don't be late Kevin" were the only words she said as she disconnected the line and threw the phone away. The tears she held up, now sprung out finally from her sweet, innocent eyes as she hugged the phone to her chest, taking his voice in and storing it in her heart while her eyes wandered and landed on the same frame again.

Their engagement picture.

Oh how happy they were! How she thought that she'll love him forever and how he made plans for their future.

It was over.

In fact, it was over the very moment she opened her eyes in the hospital bed and realized that she couldn't feel her legs. She saw Jughead in the corner of her room. He had a bandage on his head and blood was smeared on his shirt. He was hurting but he didn't care for anyone but her.

His eyes were swollen from crying and dark circles were visible under his eyes. He carried the weight of guilt, anger and resentment on his heart and it was crushing his lungs. He couldn't breathe. He cried too much. He blamed himself even when she told him it wasn't anybody's fault. He trashed his existence completely and it was hard to bring him back to life. All she could think right now was how will he gain composure this time? 

It'll be so hard.

 

Jughead was about to enter a nightmare. He took swift and slow steps as he proceeded again to a place so familiar yet so strange. Same trailer, same place. Torn neighborhood and dirty gang people running bikes and dealing drugs. It was filthy. The thought that he was once a part of this made Jughead nauseous. He was crowned as King.

_King! What nonsense what that?_

Even the traces of bikes on the muddy grounds were the same. Dirt and debris lounging outside the filthy trailers which opened up to hell. He nodded his head and he wanted to turn around and leave. _It was a bad idea to listen to Veronica._ He wanted to run back. He felt suffocated. It was as someone sucked the breath of his lungs and he was choking.

When he decided that he would turn around, leave and never look back, just like he promised his father, a voice tore apart his decisions.  

"Boy" a chuckle, the same chuckled Jughead hated because FP used to do that whenever he used to fuck up big time.

 _Shit!_ He sighed, didn't have the nerve to turn around and see his old man, still in the same torn and awful condition but he had to.

"Hey dad" he murmured as he slowly and unwillingly turned around. He couldn't believe his eyes when a fresh looking, neatly dressed FP Jones stood in front of him.

Jughead could swear FP never dressed up this much, never on his birthday, not even on Gladys' funeral, not even on the day he threw the metal antler on his head and turned him into a Creep.

"Dad?" he whispered again as FP hugged him as his eyes wide opened. 

"Its good to see you boy" FP said with glistening eyes. He couldn't believe that his son returned home after all these years.

"Its goo-d to see you too dad" he smiled, trying not to look back and remember the awful events that tore them apart. His eyes started to water as he closed them and embraced the hug. 

 

_"What's this nonsense?" He said furiously looking at his beanie less head and snarl that covered his face._

_"I can't do this anymore" Jughead spat, looking at the ground. "I'm leaving"_

_"Don't take another step or I'll fucking kill you!" His gaze was furious and conjured. "You can't leave the Serpents hanging like this!"_

_"Watch me" he gritted his teeth, picking up the knife on the table._

_"Forsythe! You're making a mistake" his hands pointed at him angrily._

_He nodded in response. His eyes were on fire and his lips trembled from rage._

_"You're going to fucking destroy everything!" he shouted again with even more anger. "This is not the end of the world boy"_

_His grip on the knife tightened as he gathered the courage to bring it close to his sweating skin._

_"I don't want to live in this filth anymore" he closed his eyes tightly when the cold blade of the knife met the trembling, sweating skin of his shoulder. "I'm done" he said one last time before his skin began to bleed heavily._

_The pain was unbearable but it was less than what his heart was experiencing in that damn moment. He threw the knife on the floor in the pool of his own blood and shredded skin and left vowing to never come back._

_Everyone in the neighborhood heard the door slam shut. It was a night of horror for the Serpents. Their king abandoned them and no one was capable enough to take his position._

 

"What is all of this?" he was filled with shock. The trailer was the same. Torn and dirty from the outside but from inside it was so re-arranged.

Tables and chairs stacked up. Books and a whiteboard. All of this confused the hell out of Jughead. He scratched his head trying to take in all of the apparent non-mess of his father's life but his mind wasn't accepting the changes.

"I-uh-tutor Southside kids" he said, smilingly. 

Jughead's eyes narrowed while smiling as he eyed his father's serious face. _This is fucking nonsense. He must be kidding me._

"No boy. I'm not kidding" FP smiled, pouring coffee in a cup and Jughead realized he must be thinking out loud. He reached out a hand to him to give him his cup and sat on the couch. Jughead was craving answers and he needed to sate that now.

 

She rolled and tossed on her bed. _His hands touching every place they were not supposed to._ Her legs shake-up to his waist as he smiled down at her. _Her breathing phase was quick and hard and he slowly slid off her shorts._ She was writhing in the middle of the day in her bed, arching her back and lounging. _His hands were traveling to inappropriate places of her body while her eyes were shut tight in pleasure._ She slowly swirled and moaned underneath his rough touch.

 _"You like this, don't ya?" he whispered in her ears, pulling his nails in the delicate flesh of her thighs._   _He gripped her hips as slammed into her while she fisted his hair and screamed._

"I do" she moaned, her hands in his hair.

_"You're a dirty girl" he hissed in her ears, biting down on her neck while he worked on her bottom mercilessly. "You know I'm off-limits, don't you?"_

"I hate her" she replied, gritting her teeth. "You belong to me!" she said screeching.

 _"Maybe you're just dreaming"_   _his gaze met hers slowly as she opened her lust-filled and pleasured eyes. Her blue eyes were shining bright, gazing at her face. "Or maybe you're just selfish Betty"_

"Please don't let this be a dream" she pleaded with soft eyes. "I'm not-I can't let you go Jug"

 

 

 

_"You did this!" the bands on his wrists brushed against her skin as he caressed her face softly. "You let me go once, Betty. I can't come back now"_

"I love you Juggie" her eyes watered swiftly while his hands reached up to the hem of her shirt. "And I want her to die" she whispered slowly. Tears spilled from her eyes as his hands slowly clenched her chin. "She has to die!" she said again.

"Elizabeth!" a loud, shrill voice tore apart her eyes and the bed stopped writhing underneath her.

She stood there with her mouth opened like an 'O' while she was carrying a laundry basket in her arms. Her orbs were filled with horror and disgust as she walked in her daughter having an inappropriate affair.

Betty moved a little before she came to the realization that her one hand was inside her shorts and the other one was on breasts, pinching them. Her eyes stayed wide and embarrassed while her mother's heated gaze made her unable to move. Her breathing was still tense and her mouth was dry. The tears she spilt in her dream were real on her cheeks and she wondered if she'd been moaning out loud in her sleep.

"Elizabeth! Are you having sex dreams?"

_Shit!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was a shitty filler. Next chaps are going to be intense.

**Author's Note:**

> comments will be immensely appreciated :)


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